One Rainy Night
by LauralovesPLL
Summary: "Mommy, where is daddy going? Is he going to come back?" "Just go back to bed, sweetheart." One night can change everything you know, into something dreadful. Ezria fanfic: R&R:
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1:**

"Mommy, are you okay," David Wyatt Fitz asked as his mother as she wiped a tear from her face.

"Mommy's fine, Dave," Aria Fitz said to her four-year-old son.

"Where did Daddy go? Is he coming back," David asked as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes.

"Just go back in bed, sweetheart," Aria said quietly.

_Moments before:_

_Ezra got out of bed quietly, trying not to disturb Aria, his wife of five years. He closed their bedroom door as a loud roll of thunder shook their new home. Ezra walked across the short hallway, into their son's room to see if he was alright with the weather. He walked to the small, wooden bed, only to find his four-year-old sleeping peacefully. Ezra placed a light kiss on his forehead before exiting the room._

_He took a seat near the window, watching every stream of water flow over the glass. He was living with guilt and shame, and he didn't know when to say something. He knows that if he keeps this from Aria any longer, that he would burst. Also, it would hurt her even more than it already would, so he couldn't._

"_What are you doing up," Aria asked in a small, croaky voice._

"_Couldn't sleep," Ezra replied honestly._

_Aria walked up behind his and draped her arms across his shoulders. He shrugged them off, leaving Aria confused, "What's going on, Ezra? You have been acting like this all week."_

_Ezra sighed and looked up into her eyes, "Right after the faculty mixer."_

"_What are you talking about," Aria asked, not understanding what he meant._

"_I can't do this to you anymore," Ezra said, standing from his spot on the floor, but remaining to look out the window, "I can't keep this from you. I love you too much. You and David."_

"_Ezra," Aria said softly as she wrapped her gray cardigan around her tiny figure, "You're starting to scare me. What's wrong?"_

_Ezra sighed, turning to look into her eyes, "Monday night, when I went to the faculty mixer at Justine's, after we had our little argument, she comforted me. I felt down, Aria, and she was there to fix it. And I did something, I wish I didn't," his voice cracked at the end of that statement. He gulped and let a tear slid down his cheek, "I cheated on you."_

_A roll of thunder shook the house, and a lightning flash illuminated the room. Everything was silent, except for the rain pounding outside._

_Aria closed her eyes and shook her head as her eyes developed tears, "No. No, Ezra, that isn't possible."_

"_But, Aria, I did," Ezra said as more tears fell from his face._

"_No," Aria said back a little louder, "You wouldn't do that to me. You made a commitment to me. You vowed to be faithful to me. You promised me that you would never cheat. You love me!"_

_Ezra looked at her face, full of anger, but mostly hurt. It was the worst thing he had ever had to see. The pain on her face. "I did, though, Aria. It is not something I am proud of, but I did. I'm sorry."_

_A silent tear streamed down Aria's face, but she quickly wiped it away. She looked into Ezra's eyes, unbelievingly. She turned her face toward the window and wiped another tear away. "Get out, Ezra."_

_He shook his head sorrowfully, "Aria, I'm really sorry."_

"_Just go," she said in a whisper. Ezra let a sob rip through his chest as he turned for the door. As his hand reached the doorknob, he turned to look at the woman who was now heartbroken because of him._

"_I love you, Aria. And I will forever regret my mistake," Ezra said to her. As soon as the door closed, Aria fell to the floor. She felt like her heart had been shattered into millions of tiny pieces. Her vision was fuzzy, and her hands were shaking. She looked at her hand and saw a small glimmer of light bounce off of the gold of her wedding band. _

_Her lips trembled as she twisted the ring off of her finger. She didn't know that she could ever feel this sad and empty. She didn't know that Ezra would ever hurt her like this. She threw the ring across the room and began to cry even harder, when she heard a door squeak open from the hallway._

Now:

Ezra was sitting on the park bench across the street, letting the rain hit his face. Not caring that he could get sick. Not caring about anything but his family he had now torn apart. Tears were mixed in with raindrops, and his clothes stuck to his skin as he let out sobs. He did this to himself.

All that he could think about was the pain he saw on Aria's face. He didn't know he could ever be the one to hurt her like that. He loved Aria with all of his heart. He showed her that love and proved it with David. One night can change everything. He just wished he could've stopped himself from making the biggest slip of his life.

No matter how many times they had fought over countless things, she still loved him. She still had never given up on him. And it wasn't fair of him to cheat on her because of another fight that they could've worked through together. It finally dawned on him that Aria held no more love for him.

Aria crawled into her bed, tears still falling. She pulled the blankets up to her shoulders and buried her face into them. A picture of her and Ezra on their wedding day sat on her bedside table. She silently lifted a hand and put it face down. She felt incomplete. No arms were wrapped around her, no gentle kisses were being placed on her lips, no breathing was in her ear. Just silence. She curled herself up into a ball and closed her eyes until she cried herself to sleep.

**Note: Review!**

**~Laura**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2:**

Ezra awoke from his spot on the bench. The sky was still gray, but the rain had turned into a really bad fog. He wiped his face, ridding the stained tears and raindrops that remained on it all night. He needed to see Aria.

Ezra walked across the street and down two houses to his front door. He took his key from his pocket and opened the door. Gently, he walked into the living room to find David, holding his rocket ship blanket in his hands.

"Daddy," David yawned and ran up to his father, latching onto his leg. Ezra's eyes filled with tears, knowing he betrayed not only Aria, but also his son.

"Hey there, my little man," Ezra said as he scooped the four-year-old in his arms and kissed his forehead.

"Daddy, where you went last night," David asked as he wrapped his small arms around Ezra's neck, "Mommy was crying and you weren't there to fix it. You always fix it."

Ezra tried to be strong. David already saw his mother cry, so seeing his father cry would send him into sadness, too. He cleared his throat, "I couldn't help her, sweetheart. Where is Mommy now, Dave?"

David pointed toward the room at the end of the hallway, "In there. I wanted to go snuggle with her this morning, but she said she wasn't feeling well. I think she is sick. She was crying again this morning."

Ezra sighed and shook his head, "Okay, Dave, you need to go in your room for Daddy until I come get you. Deal?"

"Deal," David nodded and smiled. Ezra put him down and he raced into his room. Ezra ran a hand through his hair and let a tear fall. Taking a deep breath, he began to walk to his bedroom. He reached the door and twisted the doorknob. He walked in and saw Aria, sprawled out on the bed with tissues everywhere. She had her face in the pillow and was whimpering into it. He walked in a little ways, and Aria heard a couple of footsteps.

"Baby, I told you Mommy wasn't feeling well," Aria said wiping her tears and looking toward the door. She looked Ezra up and down, noticing the state he was in. She was so mad and hurt by him, that she couldn't stop the words from coming out of her mouth, "What are you doing back here?"

"Aria, we need to talk," Ezra said softly, looking into her glassy eyes.

"Ezra, what is there to talk about," Aria said in a whisper, "You swore you would never do this. Out of everything we have been through, I never once was unfaithful to you. Sure, we fought and screamed at each other, but we would get through it," she said as she wiped a tear from her face.

"What can I do to fix this," Ezra asked in a broken whisper.

Aria bit her lip and sniffed, "Leave."

"What," Ezra asked, his head spinning at her words.

"Get your things, take your car, and go," Aria said harshly. "But don't think you are going to leave without telling our son what you did. I sure as hell won't be the one to tell him why his father has to move out!"

Ezra swallowed, "Aria, you can't be serious."

"I am," she said, standing from the bed and walking passed him. Ezra broke down. He quickly packed his things as Aria said and brought them to the living room. Apparently, Aria went to get David for breakfast, because he was at the table playing with one of his toy cars.

"Are we going on vacation," David asked excitedly, running up to Ezra.

"No, buddy, we aren't," Ezra's voice cracked. He looked at Aria, who was standing across the room, watching him and shaking her head. "Daddy has to go away right now."

"Why," David asked as he held onto Ezra.

"Because Daddy did something wrong, and to not make it worse, I have to leave you and Mommy," Ezra said.

"What did you do," David asked with a pouty lip; something he got from Aria which signaled he was about to cry.

"You know how Mommy was crying all night and today," David nodded and Ezra gulped, "I did that."

"Daddy, you made Mommy cry," David asked, letting go of his father.

Ezra glanced toward Aria in the far corner, whose face glimmered with tears, "Yes, sweetheart, I did, but Daddy didn't mean-," Ezra was interrupted by his son.

David whimpered and wiggled out of Ezra's grasp, "Let go of me. You hurt my Momma." Ezra tried to catch the little boy, but he was already in his mother's arms.

"Don't worry, Momma," David said as he hugged Aria's neck, "I won't let him hurt you anymore."

Tears began to fall rapidly down Ezra's face. Reality hit him. His son hated him for what he did. Aria hated him for what he did. He hated himself for what he did. Ezra wiped his face and stood up. He walked over to Aria and looked her in the eyes.

"I'm really sorry," Ezra said; sadness and sorrow laced in his voice, "I really am."

Aria gulped, "Me, too."

Ezra placed his key to the house on the table as he picked up his belongings. He looked at his family one last time, before leaving the home he built, and also shattered.

"Are you okay," David said as he played in his mother's hair.

"No, baby. I'm not okay," Aria sighed back as she sat in the recliner and held her son.

"I love you," David said softly as he pulled away and looked in her eyes.

Aria smiled a little and gave him a peck on the lips, "I love you, too, my darling." He put his head back down on her shoulder and soon fell asleep.

Ezra swerved, his vision becoming blurry from all of the tears being emitted from his eyes and the rain that began to fall all over again. He pulled over and rested his head on the steering wheel. His hands were in fists that were clenched tight.

"Why did you do this," he yelled at himself, "Why would you hurt the people you love most like that?" He began to sob uncontrollably. He threw his head back on the seat and closed his eyes. One fist accidentally hit the radio button, and his car filled with the lyrics to "Let It Rain" by David Nail. Ezra put his head in his hands and cried even more as he listened to the lyrics, seeming to be just for him.

_It's hard to find the perfect time to say something _

_You know is gonna change everything_

_Livin' with the shame; it's nothing like the pain_

_That I saw on her face_

_Let it rain, let it pour_

_She don't love me anymore_

_Just let it come down on me_

_Let it come down on me_

_Let it rain_

**Note: It will be kind of depressing for a while, yes, but it will be a great story. Promise. Also, if you read my other story, "Be There For Me, Always?", the update will take a little longer than usual. I didn't get as many reviews as my other chapters. Are you getting bored? Thank you to all who reviews! It means a lot!**

**And AJMcGough/ Abby – Thanks for inviting me to the wedding:) We'll think about it! haha**

**HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY:)**

**Please review!**

**~Laura**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3:**

Aria lay in her bed, her son snuggled next to her. She stroked his browns locks that sat on top of his head. His blue eyes were open and playing with his mother's fingers. Aria smiled at her little boy. He brought his eyes up to Aria's, revealing a stray tear falling down his face.

"Baby, what's wrong," Aria asked as she wiped the tear away from his cheek.

"I miss Daddy," David said in a small voice, "Is he going to come home?"

Aria looked at the sadness in the four-year-olds eyes. She didn't want him to experience going over to his mother's house and then to his father's house so early in life. She and Ezra both knew what that was like. She also didn't want him to grow up, thinking that was how you were supposed to live.

She wiped another tear away from his face and smiled at him, "How about I call Daddy and see if he wants to come over today, okay? You and him can have a day together? What do you say?"

He nodded his head enthusiastically, "Tell him we can play cars, wrestle, be in Star War fights, and everything, Momma!"

"Sounds like a plan," Aria giggled and kissed him on the forehead, "Go get dressed, okay? I'll call him right now."

"Okay," David agreed and ran off to his room.

Aria sighed and looked over to where her phone lay. It rang every night for the past five days. Five days is how long it has been since she kicked Ezra out. However, she had been sleeping alone for six. She got up and picked her phone off the floor.

"One hundred twenty-three missed calls from Ezra," Aria said. She dialed the all-too familiar phone number.

"Aria," Ezra's voice breathed out, "I've been calling you for the past five days."

"I know," Aria sighed and closed her eyes tightly, "Look, David misses you. I don't know about you, but I don't want him to have to go through what I went through. Going to my dad's and mom's every other day when they split up. So, I want you to come over right now for a day with your son."

"Okay, but Aria," Ezra said softly, "We need to talk."

"No, we don't," Aria said, "I have to go."

She hung up the phone without one more word and threw it across the room. She dragged her hands down her face and fell back onto the bed. Her heart felt like it had been torn open all over again. She hurt more than she ever had in her life.

"Okay, Momma," David ran into Aria's room before she could wipe the tears away, "Mommy, do you miss him, too?"

Aria smiled at her son's concerns for her. She scooped him into her arms and kissed him repeatedly, "Do you know how much I love you, David?"

"Well, I know how much I love you," David giggled and outstretched his arms as far as they could go, "This much! I bet you can't beat that!"

"Oh yeah," Aria said with a laugh, "Well, I love you _this _much," Aria said, outstretching her arms, which naturally were longer than his.

"And you know what else these arms are good for," Aria asked as David smiled up at her, "Tickling adorable little children!"

David screamed and ran out the room, Aria chasing after him. He ran into the living room as Aria pulled him to her and tickled him to the ground. As the laughter that Aria had wanted so badly over the last few days continued, they heard the doorbell ring, signaling that Ezra was here.

Aria kissed David one last time and ruffled his hair up before opening the front door.

"Good morning," Ezra said as he looked into her eyes.

"Morning," Aria said back in monotone.

"Daddy," David ran up to Ezra and latched onto his leg like he always did when he arrived home.

"Hey, Dave," Ezra picked up his son and hugged him tightly, "I've missed you so much. You and your mother." Aria watched as his eyes filled with tears, but he quickly blinked them away.

"You just missed me and Momma's tickle fight," David laughed in a squeaky voice.

"Well, how about you go and get your Star Wars light sabers out, and we can have a battle," Ezra suggested, "How does that sound?"

"Awesome," David said in awe as he ran off to his room.

Aria and Ezra both laughed, but it didn't last very long. Ezra walked into the living room as Aria shut the door.

She took a seat across the room from him and curled her legs up to her chest.

Ezra sighed, "Aria we can't keep doing this."

"I said I don't want to talk about it," Aria said, turning her face away from him.

"And I said we need to," Ezra said, raising his voice a little, "I told you it was a mistake, and -," Ezra got cut off.

"See, that's where you're wrong," Aria said throwing her hands up, "Cheating on me wasn't a mistake, Ezra, it was a choice. A choice that you made. I know I haven't been perfect throughout our marriage, but I wouldn't choose to do that to you."

"Well, I made the wrong choice that night," Ezra said, walking over to Aria and sitting right next to her, "Aria, I'm still in love with you. I still want you to be my wife. I'm truly sorry for what I did. If I could change one thing in my entire life, it would be that night. The past few days, I haven't been sleeping because I couldn't hold you in my arms. I couldn't kiss your lips. I couldn't look at you and tell you that I love you. I miss you, Aria."

A tear ran down Aria's cheek. She looked at her empty ring finger and realized she had felt everything he had felt during the past few days. Alone. Empty. Sorrowful. But that didn't change what he did.

"Please say something," Ezra said as he put his hand on top of hers.

Aria looked at their hands pressed against one another and back into Ezra's eyes, "I don't know what to say." She pulled her hand away and scurried off to her room. Ezra put his head in his hands and stared across the room. Something underneath the coffee table caught his eye.

He bent down and pulled it out from beneath it. He held the small gold band that he had given Aria on the wedding day in his hands. He pressed it to his lips and shook his head.

"Daddy, I'm Luke Skywalker, though," David ran into the room with two light sabers and a Dark Vader mask in his hands. Ezra slipped the ring into his pocket and smiled over to his son, remembering the reason he was invited to come.

Ezra took the mask and light saber from him and smiled at him, "I am your father!"

* * *

"Mommy," David whispered to his mother later in the night as she tucked him in for bed, "Can Daddy just spend the night? Please? I don't want him to leave again. He told me he wasn't going to hurt you anymore."

"I don't know, baby," she told David as she helped him into his Scooby-Doo pajamas.

"Think about it, please," David said as his eyelids drooped. A yawn escaped his mouth, "I love you, Momma." And right after the words left his lips, he was fast asleep.

Aria put his nightlight on and kissed his forehead, "Love you, too, munchkin." She flicked off the light and left a crack in his door before going into the kitchen.

She poured her a cup of coffee and walked into the living room to find Ezra, sprawled out across the sofa with the Dark Vader mask still on his face. Aria giggled and set her coffee cup down on the coffee table.

"Ezra," Aria said softly as she pulled the mask off his face, "Ezra, wake up."

His blue eyes opened slowly, and they quickly attached to Aria's hazel ones. With her face close to his from taking the mask off his face, Ezra inched closer toward her. Just inches away from her lips, she pulled away and sat back down on the couch.

Ezra sighed and sat up. He watched as Aria played with her fingers, something she did when she was nervous. He reached into his pocket and scooted next to her.

"I, uh, found this under the coffee table," Ezra said, placing the ring in Aria's hand, "I was thinking that you might want that back."

"Ezra-," Aria sighed, but she didn't have anything else to say.

"Aria, listen to me," Ezra said, pleading for her to hear what he was trying to say, "I know I was wrong. I know I was stupid, reckless, and not thinking when I made the choice to cheat. But I have also never felt this alone in my life. Most men would keep it from their wives as long as possible, but I knew I couldn't hurt you like that when I knew I would hurt you this much."

"I don't want to get a divorce," Ezra choked out, "I'm so sorry for this. I'll make it up to you any way I can, but I want you to know that I am sorry for this, Aria. I'm so sorry," Ezra broke off as tears began to stream down his face. Aria watched him as he broke down into full sobs. She closed her eyes tightly together before putting her arms around his body.

"We can go to therapy or something, but I don't want to lose you, Aria, I can't lose you. You are the most important thing that has ever happened to me. I love you so much and I am so sorry," Ezra shook uncontrollably, causing Aria to cry. They both were an emotional wreck as they sat there; embraced by one another.

**Note: What did you think? Btw, "Be There For Me, Always?" will be up as soon as possible! Please leave a review!**

**AJMcGough/Abby- Alright then. May 27****th**** it is!**

**Notinyourlifetimehoney- I completely agree with you that cheating is a choice, not a mistake. That is why I put it in this chapter! Totally agree with you on that one!**

**Love us- I was a couple days late on updating, but I did it as fast as I could! Do you forgive me for this longer chapter!**

**HarrylovesGinny09, Gurl, theilluminatidreamteam, HaNpllfan, .heart, RCA, Love us, CheyeM1287, AJMcGough, Notinyourlifetimehoney, prettygirlswrite, anonymous, anon,**

**bite-me-im-irish, anon, Meagan, jonasgurl19, SophieeLeon, MandiLeigh8, lucianfan, sarale, Essme, Nabrenda12, Princessjasmine12- THANK YOU TO ALL OF YOU!**

**~Laura**


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4:**

Aria opened her eyes slowly, trying to block out the sudden light that streamed through the windows. She recollected all of the things that happened last night. She and Ezra talking, he saying he was truly sorry, and them both crying themselves to sleep. She lifted her head, which was rested on Ezra's stomach. Her eyes traveled up to his face, which seemed to still be sleeping.

Slowly, she untangled her legs from his. Since she was in between the back of the couch and Ezra's body, she had trouble getting off of the sofa. Aria gently placed a hand on either side of Ezra and attempted to climb over him. As she got one foot on the ground and trying to pull the other one over, she lost her balance and fell flat onto the floor with a loud thud.

"Ow," Aria said softly as she got knocked out of breath.

Ezra's eyes shot open and quickly found Aria on the floor. He laughed, stood up, and extended his hand to her, "Are you alright?"

"Yeah. My, uh, dignity broke my fall," Aria giggled, taking his hand. Ezra pulled her up to her feet, "Thanks."

Ezra smiled widely, "This reminds me of when you tripped at our wedding. I forget how clumsy you are sometimes."

Aria pushed him onto the sofa and grabbed his hands, "We said we would never talk about that again."

Ezra chuckled and flipped her so now she was pinned against the sofa. Ezra held both of her arms with one hand as his other went to her stomach. "You know what else I forget?"

"Don't."

"Oh, yes, I always forget how-," Ezra trailed off to look her in the eyes.

"Ezra, I swear if you do it…"

"How ticklish you are," Ezra started tickling her, causing her to squirm beneath his weight. She laughed uncontrollably, kicking her legs as Ezra continued. However, one of her hands was free, and she punched him square in the jaw.

"I am so sorry," Aria said as he climbed off of her, "I warned you not to tickle me. Are you okay?"

"Yeah," Ezra choked out as he held his nose, "I'm fine."

Aria scooted closer to him, "Come here, and let me see it." She slapped his hand away and began to observe it carefully. "Well, you can stop your whining, you big sissy. It is just fine."

"Okay," Ezra said as he rested his head against the cushions, "How about we talk about something else? For starters, have you thought about what we are going to do?"

Aria let out a breath and shook her head, "Not really. But I think we should go and see a marriage counselor or someone soon. I think there is one nearby that offers a first visit for free. We could start there."

Ezra looked at Aria and grabbed her hand, "I'm so sorry for everything, Aria."

Aria looked down and pulled her hand away, "Well, I probably drove you to it, Ezra."

"Aria-," Ezra began, but Aria silenced him sharply.

"Don't try and sugar coat it, okay? Please just tell me the truth," Aria sighed and looked back into his eyes, "No more secrets."

"It wasn't just you," Ezra said, putting a hand on her leg, "Do you remember when we used to have petty arguments over nothing? We had them nonstop for a couple months. But when the big fight happened, I was filled with adrenaline and anger, that I didn't care what the hell I did."

Aria looked back down, "Thanks for being honest with me."

"How about I call that marriage counselor's office right now," Ezra said, looking into Aria's now tear filled eyes, "I want to save our marriage as fast as I possibly can."

Aria nodded softly and tried to blink away her tears, but Ezra saw that her lip was pouty, signaling that she was about to cry. Ezra wrapped his arms around her. He waited for her to pull away, but she never did. She just held onto him tighter and started to cry into him.

"I want us back to the way we were before," Aria whispered, "What happened to us, Ezra?"

"I don't know," Ezra admitted as he kissed her hair, "But that is what we are going to find out." Ezra grabbed her hands and led her to the bedroom. She climbed in bed, but Ezra stopped at the foot of it.

"Ezra, this is your bed, too," Aria half-smiled and patted the seat next to her.

She opened her laptop as he settled next to her. They both looked up the number and made an appointment for the following day. Aria let out a breath that she had been holding and fell back onto the pillows. Ezra pushed the laptop aside and lay down next to her. Out of habit, Ezra pulled her close to him, and she draped an arm across his abdomen.

Ezra looked into Aria's eyes, seeing what he has seen every time he looked into them for the past couple of weeks. Sadness, shock, sorrowfulness. But now there was a spark of something that was different. Ezra saw hope.

"Aria," Ezra asked softly.

She turned her head and propped her chin up on his chest, "Yeah?"

"I've missed you," Ezra whispered as he tucked a curl behind her ear.

"I've missed you, too," she said back, rubbing his stomach lightly, but just enough to send chills down his body.

Ezra hugged her tighter and planted kisses along her hairline. Aria closed her eyes and wiped the remaining tears off of her face. Ezra rubbed along her arms, soothing her the best way he could.

"Do you think we will be okay," Aria sniffed and looked up at him.

Ezra stroked her hair and sighed, "I hope so, Aria. I really and truly hope so."

"Me, too," she breathed.

Ezra looked out of their window, "David must think I'm a monster. He probably hates me."

Aria immediately sat up, "Don't say that. Didn't you see the way his face lit up when he saw you yesterday? He missed you. When I tucked him in last night, he was so happy."

Ezra shook his head slightly, "That is only because he is too young to understand what is really going on. Once he gets older, he is going to hate me. He won't even see me as his father. I don't even feel like a real father. Or husband."

Aria turned his head to look at her, revealing the tears on his face, "Ezra, you have done unbelievably wondrous things to our family. You have been a great father to our son. And you have given me all of the love you possibly could. We hit our rough spot recently. The only rough spot throughout our whole marriage."

"Yeah, but what I did is unforgivable, Aria," Ezra choked out, fighting back more tears.

"No," Aria shook her head, feeling her eyes becoming wet also, "The worst possible thing you could've done was to not admit it. You could've kept up the act for as long as you wanted. Or leave your son and I after you cheated. That would've been unforgivable. But, you told me the truth, and you are fighting for me."

Ezra shook his head again; lost for words. Aria silently let out a few tears as she watched Ezra break all over again. She embraced him just as she had hours before. He shook and sobbed into her arms, apologizing every so often.

After the sobs had calmed to weeping, Aria held him in her arms, his head on her shoulder. "We need that appointment. Now. I can't stand to see you like this. Ezra, you need to forgive yourself for this. If I can forgive you for this, you need to forgive yourself."

"I ruined us," he whispered in monotone. "None of this would've happened if I didn't do that. I was supposed to be the leader of this family. To be true to you in good times and in bad. I vowed that to you on our wedding day. I broke the most important promise of my life."

"Well, I vowed that, too," Aria said after a long pause, "And this is a bad time. You are truly sorry, Ezra, and I am forgiving you, so you need to forgive yourself, too."

Ezra stayed silent and just held onto her. Aria kissed him on the head and ran her fingers through his hair. She just held him in her arms.

"Please help us, God. Please."

**Note: Please review.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Note: Just wanted to clarify something. Aria has not totally forgiven Ezra. She is on the path to forgiveness. So just to be clear, she is in the process of forgiving him.**

**Chapter 5:**

The clock in the upper corner of the white room ticked softly. Aria cleared her throat, glancing at Ezra on the right side of her. His eyes had bags underneath them, for he didn't rest much the night before. She had tried so hard to help him fall asleep, but he refused and continued to quietly weep for the rest of the night. She placed a hand on his knee, causing him to shake the distant look on his face and return to reality.

He looked into her eyes and gave her a forced smile, "Is David going to stay over at your parent's place for the night or just for the day?"

"For the night," Aria replied softly, pulling her hand away and tucking a curl behind her ear, "I just thought that we would need to clear our heads after the appointment. Some time to just think and reflect on whatever the counselor says."

Ezra nodded in response, "Are you nervous?"

"Like hell," Aria said back, crossing her legs and folding her arms over her chest.

"Mr. and Mrs. Fitz," a woman called out from the door across them, "Dr. Parsley is ready for you. Go straight down this hallway to the fourth door. He will be with you shortly."

"Thank you," Aria smiled at the woman kindly and stood up. Ezra followed her to their destination in silence. They entered the awaiting door, feeling goose bumps arise on their skin from the sudden chilly air. They both took a seat on the maroon, leather couch. Sitting across from them was a matching chair, obviously for Dr. Parsley.

Aria sat in the same position as she did in the waiting room, shaking her foot subconsciously. Ezra held his face in his hands, listening to her bangles shake every time her foot hit the bottom of the couch.

"Hello," a tall, brown haired man walked into the room, smiling at the pair, "Mr. Ezra and Mrs. Aria Fitz, right?"

"Right," Aria said with a small smile and stopped shaking her foot, "You must be Dr. Parsley."

He nodded in response as he took a seat in front of them, "So, all I know is you both have had trouble recently. Could you please tell me what has happened?"

Ezra lifted his head and looked into his lap, "I cheated on her."

"Okay," Dr. Parsley said softly, "Tell me what happened before that. What was your marriage like before this happened? Back track a bit to where the troubles began. Surely you just didn't do it because you felt like it."

Aria shook her head, "No, sir. Well, we have been married for five years now. We had a son during the first year of our marriage. Everything was going well, but we began to have these petty arguments. Over stupid little things that didn't need to be fought over. Like who will do chores and things like that."

Dr. Parsley looked at his lap in thought, "When exactly did these arguments start happening?"

"A couple of months ago. Recently," Aria replied, glancing over at Ezra, who was looking at the professional.

"Did anything change, during your marriage, which could've stressed either of you out more than usual? A new job, perhaps? A promotion, the child, anything?"

Ezra looked at Aria and leaned forward, "Well, I had to start staying late at school. I did get a promotion at work, but I don't see how that could've caused a problem."

Dr. Parsley glanced in between the couple, "It contributed to the stress and petty fights. Aria, how did you feel during that time?"

Aria gulped and looked at her lap, "Lonely," she looked at Ezra, "I didn't want to tell you because you worked so hard to get that promotion, Ezra. I didn't want to ruin it for you."

"You should've told me, Aria. You and Dave are more important to me than a job," Ezra sighed.

"Communication is a big part of a marriage," the counselor explained, "That was where the problems started. Aria, you should've told Ezra how you felt. Ezra, you should have taken a step back and consulted with Aria about this. You cannot read each other's minds."

The couple nodded. Dr. Parsley leaned forward in his chair, "Were the petty arguments alone the cause of the infidelity?"

Ezra shook his head, "No. The petty arguments piled up, and we had a giant fight, which caused me to act the way I did."

"Please tell me what happened," Dr. Parsley leaned back as Aria and Ezra shared glances.

_Flashback:_

_Aria closed the door to her house and set the keys and groceries down on the table. She smiled as she heard shuffling emerging from her bedroom. She and Ezra had barely seen each other all weekend. She kicked off her shoes and walked into her bedroom. _

"_You look amazing," Aria admired Ezra's suit and tie as she leant against the bathroom door frame, "A little fancy for a night at home."_

"_I'm not staying home. I'm going to the faculty mixer at Justine's," Ezra answered in monotone._

_Aria looked at him curiously, "I thought this was our night? You told me you were staying home with me to watch movies and be together. You were at meetings all weekend."_

"_And you told me you went to your parent's house on Saturday," Ezra snapped at her as he walked over to the bed._

"_What are you talking about," Aria asked, following him._

"_Oh, come on, Aria," Ezra said bitterly, "Maybe you should learn how to not leave your phone at home. It kept beeping, so I looked at it. Jason said how nice it was to see you again. You said you went eat lunch with your parents, when you were really having lunch with your ex-boyfriend!"_

_Aria swallowed, "I didn't tell you the truth because I knew you would overreact like this!"_

_Ezra laughed sarcastically, "I'm overreacting? How would you act if I decided to lie to you about meeting Jackie, huh? Would you just let it go, or would you act like this?"_

_Aria shrugged. Ezra rolled his eyes and walked into the living room. Aria followed him, stopping in front of him, "Look, I'm sorry. He was in a dark place and asked if I wanted to go with him for lunch. As friends. Nothing more."_

"_Yeah, right," Ezra said, looking into her eyes, "And you are not sorry. You are just sorry you got caught. You never would've told me about this if I would not have found that conversation."_

"_Yes, I would have," Aria yelled after him as he walked out of the front door. Ezra stopped walking and turned swiftly to face her._

"_Really, now? I surely believe you on that one," Ezra yelled back at her, "I'm going to that mixer tonight. Why don't you call up Jason and ask him to come over for dinner? I bet he'd love that."_

"_Maybe I will," Aria said sternly._

"_Go ahead," Ezra spit out, getting into his car and driving off. Aria stood there a good ten minutes, letting a few tears spill down her cheeks. She stomped up the steps and slammed the door behind her._

_End of Flashback:_

"And looking back on that now, how do you feel," Dr. Parsley asked as he watched them intently.

"Foolish," Aria said softly, "I should not have gone with Jason."

"Childish," Ezra agreed, "I should have never acted that way."

"I'm sorry," they said simultaneously, looking at one another.

"Good. Good," Dr. Parsley whispered to them, "I see a lot of love between you two. All you need to do is find a way to communicate more often. Take time off of work and spend time with you family, Ezra. Aria, be honest about your feelings. He needs to know how you feel. And ask her how she feels about things. Make sure you both agree. Also, stress is also a big part of the issue. If you are stressed about something, don't take it out on one another. Work through it together."

Aria nodded, "What's the next step, Dr. Parsley? Will we be able to save our marriage?"

"I believe so," he said gently, "Judging by what you told me and what I have seen, you have already accomplished what some couples accomplish in six months or more. You have already understood what caused the infidelity. You are both in the process of forgiving each other and I am assuming this will not happen again."

"Never," Ezra said sternly, "Never again."

"Well, then, great," Dr. Parsley responded, "The affair has ended. You are both accountable for your actions. You both want to save you marriage. You both know what contributed to the affair. You basically helped each other on your own. That is a remarkable thing. Now, I need you both to make a commitment to each other. You both have to be honest with each other. No matter what it may be, you have to be honest. I would advise you to schedule another appointment soon, okay?"

"Thank you," they both thanked the man and left out of the office.

"I'll make another appointment for next week," Ezra said, handing the keys to Aria, "Wait for me in the car?"

"Sure," Aria said, taking the keys from Ezra and walking to the car. Ezra watched as she shut the door and started up the car.

"Excuse me. May I please see Dr. Parsley for one more moment," Ezra asked the nurse. She nodded at the door, signaling for Ezra to go in. He walked back into his office, "There is one more thing I need to ask you."

"Yes, Mr. Fitz," he said, standing from his chair and facing Ezra.

"My son," Ezra began, shaking his head slightly, "Do you think he will hate me when he knows what really happened between me and Aria?"

"I can't promise that," Dr. Parsley said gently. Ezra nodded and began to turn around, but Dr. Parsley stopped him, "But if you stay committed to your family and love them wholeheartedly, he might find a way to."

"Thank you," Ezra said, wiping a tear from his eyes.

"Good luck, Ezra," Dr. Parsley smiled, "Be honest and true to Aria and your son. I'll see you soon?"

"Yes, sir, definitely," Ezra shook his hand and walked out of the office, a new spark of hope rushing through his body. He made the appointment and made his way to the car.

"You were in there for a while," Aria said as he closed the door to the car, "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah," Ezra replied, looking at Aria with a smile. He reached over to her seat and took her hands in his.

"Is something wrong," Aria eyed him curiously.

Ezra gave her hands a squeeze and looked her deeply in the eyes. He smiled and let out a small laugh.

"No, I think everything is going to be just fine."

**Another Note: TOMORROW! Wohoooo! I am so excited! Did you like the chapter? How am I doing? Still interesting? Please review and tell me! **

**~Laura**


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6:**

After the appointment that Aria and Ezra had earlier in the day, the weather had gotten worse. Ugly gray clouds were rolling in at a rapid rate. The wind had gotten really strong and took down a few limbs of their tree outside of their home. Rain hadn't hit yet, but thunder brought the message that it would soon be upon them.

Ezra, however, was oblivious to all of this as he lay sound asleep in his bedroom. His legs sprawled out and deep sighs echoing throughout the area. Aria leaned against the door frame and allowed herself to smile for a moment, before closing the door and making her way to the kitchen. She climbed onto the counter top, unable to reach the wine cabinet without doing so. She dug out a bottle and placed it at her feet. Sighing, she poured herself a glass and went to the living room, taking a seat and staring out of the window.

The truth was Aria wasn't having as easy as a time with this as she made it seem. After seeing Ezra completely break down, numerous amounts of time, she decided to be the strong one. But now, she was getting the feeling that she shouldn't have done that. Bottling up her real feelings was cutting her deeper and deeper each day. She recalled what Dr. Parsley said about being honest and telling Ezra how she felt, but it was hard.

She twirled the wine glass in her hands and took a big gulp. She brought her feet up and curled them into her chest, "Why did this have to happen," she asked herself quietly as she continued to stare outside.

The phone started ringing, causing Aria to jump at the sudden sound. She smiled at the caller and picked up the phone, "Hey, baby. Are you having fun?"

"Hey, Momma," David said excitedly through the speaker, "I'm having a lot of fun. Grandma and Grandpa took me to the park this morning, and they said that if it stops raining by tomorrow, they will take me to the zoo!"

Aria grinned at her son's excitement, "Wow, that's great! David, are you sure you won't be scared of the weather?"

"No, I'll be fine," David said in a matter-of-fact tone, "I'll go and sleep with Grandma and Grandpa. Oh, Grandma wants to talk to you, too. Love you, Momma. Tell Dad I love him, too."

"We love you, too," Aria said softly as she listened to his feet shuffle and give the phone to Ella.

"Hey, honey," Ella said sweetly through the phone, "How was your day?"

Aria closed her eyes and sighed, "It was a long one, Mom. A very long one." Aria listened on the other end. Usually her mother would ask her what happened, but she didn't. Aria knew something was up, and then it hit her. "What did he tell you?"

Ella sighed and paused, walking into another room, "He said that you made Ezra leave. That he hurt you really bad and that you cried for days. And that you two were going to an appointment today. Aria, sweetie, why didn't you tell me about this?"

Aria's eyes watered, "I didn't want you to know. I didn't tell anyone. Hell, I didn't even tell myself it was true for a few hours."

"Aw, baby," Ella said softly, "I love you so much, Aria. If you don't want to talk about it any further right now, then you don't have to."

"I love you, too, Mom," Aria replied, smiling as a tear slid down her cheek, "I have to go. Bye." She hung up the phone and put her glass on the coffee table in front of her. She placed her head in her hands and let herself cry. After a few moments, she lifted herself off of the couch and padded down the hallway to her bedroom. She climbed into the bed and shook Ezra's shoulders, unable to call his name through her tears.

Ezra's eyes fluttered open. It didn't take him long to find the tears streaming down her face. He pulled her close to him and embraced her tightly, rubbing her back soothingly as she did to him when he cracked. "Please, tell me what's wrong, Aria."

Aria sucked in a breath and swallowed, "I keep thinking about what we talked about this morning at the appointment. Telling him about the past couple months made me overwhelmed. It's like I could feel every emotion again. Hear every thought again. And I can't help but feel like that is what our marriage will continue to be like."

Ezra looked down at her and pulled back to look her in the eyes, "Aria, I will try my absolute hardest to change that. I love you too much to let us repeat that. I want our marriage to be like it was before I had to work late nights at school. I'd come home to you cooking and catch you dancing wildly to a random song playing throughout the house. David was playing cars on the floor, attaching himself to my leg. Us being us. I'm going to do everything I possibly can to get our marriage back to that."

"It feels so good to smile at our memories instead of crying," Aria smiled a little and hugged Ezra tighter. A flash of lightning illuminated the room as the power cut off. "Guess we have to get the candles out."

Ezra smiled and looked at her curiously, "Aria, could we go on a date tonight?"

"Are you insane," Aria asked with a smile as she sat up and wiped away her remaining tears, "There is no way we are going out in this weather. Do you want to die?"

Ezra laughed and followed her into the bathroom to get candles, "No. Have a date here. We used to do this all of the time in my apartment."

Aria smiled and bit her lip, as if giving the question more thought. She let out a small laugh and nodded her head, "Yes, I would love to go on a date with you."

* * *

The pair was lying on the floor, candles surrounding them from all angles. Ezra had pulled out a few board games for them to play on their date, like they used to do in his apartment when the lights had gone out. They always had fun together, no matter what they did. As long as they were together, nothing else mattered.

"That is so not fair," Aria squealed as she elbowed Ezra, "This game is rigged."

Ezra laughed, "Aria, it's Mad Gab. The phrases are written out for you. How could I have possibly rigged this?"

Aria rolled her eyes and smiled, "Whatever. Can I pick now? We've been playing this for a while."

"Someone's a sore loser," Ezra chuckled softly. Aria took a sip of her second glass of wine, giving him a slight death stare.

"One more round. You should know this one," Ezra pleaded and handed her a card. Aria took it and tried to figure out what the phrase could be. The card had the words "Isle of View". Aria said it aloud as Ezra moved closer to her. She said it a few more times and smiled up at Ezra.

"Do you need any help," Ezra asked, interlacing his fingers with hers.

Aria placed the card on the floor and wrapped her free arm around Ezra's neck, "I think I figured it out all by myself."

"I love you, Aria," Ezra said softly, as he pushed a strand of hair out of Aria's face. She looked deeply into his eyes.

Aria smiled mischievously and leaned into Ezra's ear, "Truth or dare?"

Ezra's breath hitched as he felt her hot heavy breath on his skin, "Dare."

"Kiss me," she whispered.

Ezra didn't hesitate for a second before attaching his lips to hers. It felt like it was the very first time their lips touched. Aria kissed him hungrily, missing the way their mouths fit perfectly together. All of their emotions they had been feeling over the past few were all mixed into it. Long moments later, they pulled apart, gasping for air.

Aria grabbed a piece of paper from her pocket and handed it to Ezra. He read the words "Isle of View Two". Ezra let out a small laugh and looked at her suspiciously, "How did you manage to write this without knowing I was going to give you that specific card?"

"Ezra," Aria said softly, "I am just as cheesy and romantic as you. I had my hopes that this would happen, so I came prepared."

"Ah," Ezra sighed out before reattaching their lips once more.

**Note: Finally, right? I was anticipating this moment as much as you all were! Sorry for any mistakes. I thought the Mad Gab scene was pretty creative, if I must say so myself:) I love that game! Go look it up, it's really fun. Please tell me what you thought! Review:)**

**~Laura**


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7:**

"Hey, darling," Ella cooed into the phone, "I didn't wake you up did I?"

"No," Aria whispered, sliding out of her bed as quietly as possible, "No."

"Then why are you whispering," Ella asked, mimicking her voice.

"Because you woke me up," Aria laughed as she shut her bedroom door. "It's fine though, really. It's already ten, and if I slept any longer, I'd feel like I wasted a day. How is your morning going?"

Ella sighed and chuckled, "We are about to head off to the zoo with Dave. It's not raining in Philadelphia, so we're going to spend the day. How was your night?"

"Great," Aria smiled as she made herself a cup of coffee, "Ezra and I went on a date."

"Are you crazy? There was a mini hurricane last night," Ella said, obviousness in her voice.

"No, we didn't go out," Aria laughed slightly and picked at her nails, "The lights went out. We got the candles out. He wanted to go on a date, so we pulled out the board games and played. A sip of wine here and there. It felt like we connected again, Mom. It felt really good."

"And then? Is there something you aren't mentioning because I am your mother? I mean, I know how David was conceived, Aria-," Ella said as Aria cut her off.

"We didn't do that," Aria said, pressing a hand to her forehead and blushing, "We kissed. That was it. He knew I was a little tipsy from the wine, so he wanted to wait until I was sure. He just let it get so far. It was one amazing kiss, though." Aria smiled and pinched her bottom lip softly with her fingers.

"So you both will try and work it out," Ella asked curiously.

Aria nodded her head, "Yeah. I mean, I hope we will. I know he is sorry, I really do. He hates himself for it, but I can't forget about what he did. No matter what he does, this will always be here. It's going to be extremely hard to trust him again."

"One step at a time, Aria," Ella breathed, trying to give her motherly advice, "If you truly love him, it will eventually come back. I'm not saying that it will happen overnight, honey, it could take many years, but you both need to work together and not send your marriage spiraling backwards. Got it?"

"Wow. Maybe you can be our therapist, Mom," Aria gave a small laugh, "I'll try my best. I love you."

"I love you, too, baby girl," Ella said lovingly into the phone, "All of us do." She smiled before setting the phone down on the counter. She took a huge gulp of coffee, sighing as the caffeine surged through her body.

She looked around the house, searching for something to do for her to pass time as Ezra slept. She grabbed her beverage and walked down the hall. She opened David's door, toys surrounding her from all angles. She placed her glass down on his chest of doors and got to work. Tidying always took her mind off of things. She put away all of his cars, a stuffed monkey, and a pair of shorts lying on the floor. A picture of her, him, and Ezra at his baptism caught her eye. She traced the edges with a smiled plastered to her face.

"Don't you think he is too young to be snooping through his room already," Aria snapped her head toward the door. There stood Ezra, clad in his boxers with messy curls sitting on his head. He rubbed the back of his neck as he walked further in the room to meet her.

"I wasn't snooping," Aria replied, pulling her hand away from the picture. "I was just cleaning."

"Oh," Ezra said with a chuckle as he wrapped his arms around her waist and gave her a soft kiss on the lips. "What are you doing up so early?"

Aria sighed and looked at Ezra's chest, running her hands along it, "My mom called, saying that she, Dad, and David are going to the Philadelphia Zoo today."

Ezra nodded his head slowly, "She knows, huh?"

Aria bit her lip and nodded, "David told her. He told her about me crying, you hurting me, and our appointment. It doesn't take a genius to figure that out; especially if you already went through it before."

"She hates me," Ezra whispered, running his hands along her arms and looking away from her.

"She wants us to get through it," Aria said, causing his eyes to meet hers, "She wants us to work everything out, and she believes we will." He gave her a small smile and brought his lips to hers again. Aria tangled her hands in his hair as she pressed her body against his. Ezra deepened the kiss as his hands caressed her face. His hands went to her waist and traced her curves, sending chills throughout her body. She smiled into the kiss and ran her hands down his stomach. His hands trailed to her thighs and lifted her up swiftly. She let out a giggle as she wrapped her legs around his waist.

Aria pulled away, causing Ezra to frown. She traced his swollen lip softly, "I just think that maybe we should get out of our son's room and carry this somewhere else. Like the living room or our room or the kitchen or-," Aria said teasingly, leaving kisses along his jaw and neck.

"Which one will it be," Ezra asked as he suppressed a moan and backed out into the hall.

Aria leaned into his ear, "Surprise me."

After a few hours, the couple lay in bed, wrapped up in the sheets. Aria's head rested on Ezra's chest as his fingers twirled one of her dark, brown locks of hair. She had a large smile plastered on her face; Ezra's as wide as hers. Aria lifted her head and kissed his chest, then neck, then jaw, then face, and then mouth. Ezra kissed her back passionately. He pulled her on top of him, snaking his arms around her waist. Her hands caressed the sides of his face as she continued to kiss him.

A round of knocks were heard from the bedroom. Aria pulled away, listening a little harder. Ezra looked at her confusedly.

Another knock, a little louder, echoed throughout the silent house, "Momma, Daddy, we're here," David's voice yelled throughout the house.

"We," Ezra asked, his eyes going wide, "Aria, I thought you said they were at the zoo today? All day today."

Aria climbed off of him and hurriedly grabbed her clothes off the floor, "That is because my mother told me that. Something must've happened. Hurry up and get dressed."

She slipped on a pair of shorts and a camisole and ran toward the front of the house. She brushed her fingers through her hair and opened up the door, revealing her son and mother.

"Mommy," David squealed and jumped into Aria's awaiting arms, "I missed you so much!"

Aria kissed David on the head and bounced him in her arms, "I missed you, too, squirt. What are you guys doing back so early?"

"David said he would rather come home to you instead of going to the zoo, so we took him out for ice cream and brought him home instead," Ella explained.

"Oh," Aria gave her mother a tight smile, "Well, Daddy is in the room. Why don't you go and meet him, sweetie?"

"Okay," David agreed as he ran down the hallway.

"Mom," Aria said in a hushed tone, "You couldn't have given us a heads-up?"

"I'm sorry, honey, but you had me under the impression that you weren't going to be doing 'that' during the day," Ella giggled.

"What is funny about this," Aria asked, a blush forming on her cheeks.

Ella shook her head slowly, "Nothing, but you are lucky that your father is at home, because if he would've saw your hair like this, Ezra would be nonexistent."

"We're married," Aria said defensively, folding her arms over her chest.

"Your father is still your father," Ella said, combing her fingers through her daughter's hair. "Damn, he really messed it up."

"Okay, Mom," Aria said, slapping her hand away, "Gross. Just pretend like you didn't see this. And thank you for watching David. We really appreciate it."

Ella looked her daughter up and down, "I surely see that you did," Aria turned a crimson color as Ella slapped her playfully on the arm, "Oh, I am just kidding. It was no problem. I love you."

"I love you, too," Aria said, embracing her mother.

"Thanks Mrs. Montgomery," Ezra said, walking out of the bedroom with David attached to his leg, "For everything."

"You're welcome, Ezra," Ella said, giving Aria a quick wink before walking out the door. Aria sighed deeply and locked the door. She buried her face in her hands, embarrassed and feeling awkward from the conversation she just had with her mother.

"Daddy," David said, looking up at his father, "Could we all go out to eat tonight? Please."

"Go ask your mother," Ezra replied, pointing his finger to where Aria was. "It's up to her, Dave."

"Mommy," David said with a pouty face and puppy dog eyes, "Could we go eat somewhere tonight? Pretty please with sugar on top?"

Aria smiled at her son and crouched down to his level, "Well, I would say yes, but I didn't get a big hug from anyone today." David smiled and opened his arms. Aria wrapped her arms around his small body and squeezed him softly. He wrapped his arms around her neck in response. "Well, now it is a yes."

David laughed and kissed Aria on the cheek before running to play in his room. Ezra helped her back up and kissed her tenderly, "That was a close call."

"You don't say," Aria breathed and patted his now clothed chest, "A little too close."

"Yeah, well, as long as we don't get caught," Ezra whispered, "It's all good. And by the way, I gave you way more than a bear hug today." Aria smiled as he brought his lips to hers once more.

Soon enough, dinner time came and the Fitz family was getting ready. Ezra was already dressed and was now helping David get ready. Aria was in her closet, searching for a dress to wear. She finally decided on a lacey, solid white dress that reached her mid-thigh. She matched it with a small brown belt around the waist and brown wedges. It was simple, yet stylish. Her hair was loosely curled and pulled to one side. She applied another coat of mascara before grabbing her purse and walking into the living room.

"Boys," Aria called across the house, "Are you ready yet?"

"Look, Momma! Look," David said in excitement as he stood in front of her. He was dressed in a little navy blue button down shirt with jeans and tennis shoes. He was very proud of his and his father's work.

"You look so handsome," Aria said as she rubbed his back softly. She felt a hand on her back and looked up into Ezra's eyes. "And so do you." He had on a dark green shirt with a pair of blue jeans, emphasizing the small amount of green he had in his eyes. She couldn't keep her eyes off of him, and him, her.

"Let's get going," Ezra said, grabbing his keys and coat as they walked out. They got to the restaurant and were quickly served. Small talk here and there. Ezra placed his hand on Aria's leg. She smiled at him and placed her hand on top of his and laced their fingers together. David ate his kids meal happily and colored on his menu.

"You look beautiful tonight," Ezra whispered into her ear once his son wasn't paying attention, "Absolutely beautiful. And all of the other guys here seem to think so, too."

"Yeah, right," Aria scoffed as she ate a bite of Ezra's steak.

"Maybe you don't see them sneaking peeks at you, but I sure do," Ezra said, looking around the restaurant. "Maybe we should show them that you aren't available."

Aria smiled mischievously, "Okay." She leaned in and kissed Ezra passionately, but still okay for her son to see, too. She tangled her fingers in his hair before pulling away with a big smile, "That ought to get her done."

"Mhmm," Ezra said softly, looking around and seeing the guys checking his wife out look away. He smiled triumphantly.

"Daddy," David said softly, "Could you take me to the bathroom?"

"Sure, David," Ezra said, scooting out of the booth, "We'll be right back."

"I'll be waiting," Aria smiled and kissed him again chastely. She watched Ezra take David's hand and walk him to the restrooms. She took a long sip of her strawberry margarita. She closed her eyes and put her head in her hands, feeling tired. Aria felt Ezra climb back into the seat and put his arm around her. She smiled and opened her eyes. A gasp escaped her lips as she looked at him. Except it wasn't Ezra she was looking at.

"Jason?"

**Note: Uh, oh. Please review:)**

**AJMcGough/Abby- Is this your way of saying you want a divorce? My story hasn't heard from you in a while. It misses you.**

**All reviewers- Thank you so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, much! You honestly have no idea how much I appreciate each and every one of you. I really wish I could send each of you thank you cards or something. Or find a way for you to all see my appreciation for you. Here's a link to a photo for all of you I made personally, /p/L3NNrjoKhJ/ Thank you all so much!**

**~Laura **


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8:**

"Jason," Aria said in disbelief. She hadn't seen him around since they went for coffee a few months back. He smiled widely at her; unaware of all for the grief talking to him caused her family. "Uh, what are you doing here?"

He looked at her, confusion written all over his face, "I saw you all alone over here and decided to be friendly and talk to you. I haven't seen you in a while."

"I'm, um, actually not alone," Aria looked around the restaurant for her husband and son, but they were still in the restrooms, "Ezra and David are here. They just went to the bathroom."

He unwrapped his arm from her shoulders and looked at her, "Did I do something wrong, because you look like you don't want me here." Aria looked at him and frowned. She felt really bad for not wanting him here, when all he was doing was trying to be friendly. He was a really nice guy and had no intention of hurting her or her family in any way.

"No, you didn't do anything," Aria said gently, "You just scared me is all."

Jason looked at her and smiled softly, "Because I put my arm around you? I'm sorry; I just thought it was okay for me to do. I mean, we are friends, right?"

"Yeah," Aria mumbled, trying to just get out of the situation as fast as she could, "Yeah. It's just, Ezra can have somewhat of a bad side when it comes to that stuff, you know?"

"I totally get it," Jason lat out a small chuckle. "So how are you and Ezra doing? I'm really happy for you, Aria. No matter what happened in the past, I am so glad you ended up with him."

Aria's mouth hung open, taken aback by his kind words, "It's going great. Yeah, we are doing alright. And thank you Jason, it means a lot." She caught a glimpse of familiar brown curls making their way toward her from the restrooms. She panicked and purposefully knocked her margarita to the floor. Jason got on the floor and began to clean it up for her.

"What the hell is going on," Ezra looked at Aria, and then at Jason, who was still crouched on the floor.

"I'm sorry, I am such a spaz. Oh, look who's here. Ezra, you remember Jason, don't you," Aria said, watching Ezra closely. Jason stood up and extended his hand out for him, but he didn't shake it. Instead, he just glared at him.

"Yeah," he said in an angry tone, "I remember Jason."

Jason pulled his hand back to his sides and awkwardly stood there. Ezra kept glaring at him, clearly making him uncomfortable. He cleared his throat and then turned to Aria, "Okay, um, it was nice to see you again, Aria. Have a nice night. I hope to see you soon. Uh, goodbye."

"Let's go home," Aria said softly, pushing her way past Ezra, grabbing David's hand, and walking out the door.

"Goodnight, sweetheart," Aria said as she kissed her son's head and tucked him in, "I love you."

"Love you, too," David mumbled as his eyes closed and he drifted to sleep. Aria sighed and flicked off his light, shutting the door quietly as she made her way to the bedroom.

"What happened tonight," Ezra said angrily as Aria made her way into their bedroom and shut the door quietly. She turned around to face him and gave him a look of pure aggravation.

"Nothing happened," Aria replied, throwing a hand up in the air. On the way home, he had kept glancing at her, but refused to speak. Basically ignoring her the whole way home. "Why can't you accept the fact that we will see him around town?"

"Because he ruined what we had," Ezra raised his voice a bit.

"Bull shit," Aria spat at him, "He doesn't even know what he did wrong. He is freaking clueless. Hell, I don't even know what he did. He was just being friendly, Ezra. He had no clue it would contribute to our fighting, okay? He is a really great guy, but he has no intention of being anything more than friends! He knows I am unavailable and respects that."

"I can't believe you are defending him," Ezra rolled his eyes and shook his head.

"And I can't believe that you are acting like this," Aria said, placing a hand to her forehead as her eyes became wet, "God, I can't do this anymore. All the fighting and bickering going on between us makes me get chest pains."

"I thought the fighting part was over," Ezra said quietly.

Aria shook her head, "Don't you get it? It is never going to be over. We are always going to be like this. Back and forth between us. Everyday will be a challenge for us."

"I'm willing to accept the challenges," Ezra said, standing from the bed and walking over to her. "Don't give up on us that easily."

Aria looked into his eyes and let a tear fall, "I don't know what to do anymore. But I know I can't do this." She climbed into her side of the bed and turned her back toward Ezra. He sighed and flicked off the bedside lamp.

* * *

It was nearing two o'clock in the morning. Ezra's eyes ached from staying open instead of closed. He felt horrible for fighting with Aria over what she said was nothing. He needed to trust that she wouldn't do that to him. He felt Aria shift uncomfortably on the other side of the bed, meaning she was still awake as well. She never could go to sleep angry at him and him, her. He felt like such an ass.

He smiled as an idea struck him suddenly. He eased out of bed and grabbed his phone off of the bedside table. He crept to the other side of the room with a smile on his face.

Aria kept thinking about her and Ezra's fight. Why didn't he trust her? She hated to fight with him. She shifted, attempting to get comfortable, but it was no use. She never went to sleep angry at anyone. Any problems that she had with someone needed to be resolved before she went to sleep. She felt a movement on the other side of the mattress, signaling that Ezra was up as well. He must have not been able to sleep, either.

Suddenly, the lights flicked on. Aria shielded her eyes from the bright light, and slowly pulled her arm off of her eyes to see Ezra standing in the middle of the room with his phone in hand, "May I ask what the hell you are doing?"

"No," Ezra simply replied, "But you can enjoy." Aria looked at him confusedly when his phone began to play "Pour Some Sugar on Me" by Def Leopard. Ezra smiled deviously as he started to take off his shirt. Aria's eyes widened as she watched him slowly perform a strip tease for her. Aria giggled, her bad mood gone and replaced with a happy one.

"Shake it," she giggled as Ezra stripped down to his boxers. He turned and gave her the best shake he could do. He even danced on one of their bedposts goofily. She was now laughing uncontrollably as Ezra danced over to her. The song came to an end as Ezra fell on top of Aria and gave her a kiss on the lips.

"I'm sorry for our fight," Ezra said softly as he looked at the amusement in her eyes, "I hope that what you just witnessed was a good enough apology."

"I cannot believe you just gave me a strip tease," she began to giggle again and nodded her head, "I didn't even know you could shake your ass like that. Of course I forgive you. You are the craziest, goofiest, and sexiest man I have ever met. I love you."

"I love you, too," Ezra replied before kissing her some more.

Aria pulled away and looked at him mischievously, "I think I want an encore. Take it all off." Ezra raised his eyebrows and gave her a grin. He got up and turned off the light before retreating back to the bed.

A few hours later, they held each other in a close embrace. Ezra kissed Aria's hairline as she ran her fingers up and down his chest. "I'm really sorry again for what went on tonight," Ezra whispered into the dark.

"It's fine, Ezra," Aria replied softly, but Ezra shook his head.

"No, I need to trust you," he squeezed her in his arm. She sighed, knowing that was true and giving up. "I just-," he began but closed his mouth.

"You what," Aria asked, lifting her head off of his shoulder. He bit his lip and looked at her.

"I see Jason as a threat," Ezra admitted, "He was your boyfriend before me and I'm always afraid you will go back to him. You both have a past together, and I always wonder if you regret breaking it off with him."

Aria shook her head and gave him a sad smile, "You don't need to see him as a threat. If I remember correctly, I left him for you. Jason is a good guy, but he isn't the right one for me. You are the right one for me. It has always been you. I'd never take any of that back." Ezra smiled as she leaned in to kiss him. He ran a hand through her hair and kissed her back passionately. Once they pulled away, they snuggled into one another's embrace, where they fell asleep.

* * *

"Good morning," Aria said sleepily as she walked into the kitchen. Ezra was cooking her favorite breakfast, French toast, and there was an already made cup of coffee waiting for her on the table. She walked up behind Ezra and wrapped her small arms around his stomach. He rubbed his hands up and down her forearms before turning to face her and burying his face into her hair.

"Hello, beautiful," Ezra said into her ear, putting a bright smile on her face, "Here is your French toast."

Aria grinned and slapped Ezra playfully on the butt, "Pour some sugar on it." Ezra winked at her and got the powdered sugar out of the pantry.

**Note: So, how you liked it? It was so fun to write this chapter. For some odd reason, I wanted Jason to be a good guy instead of bad. I have no clue why, but I kind of like the idea. And the strip tease part was so fun! Actually, my mom suggested it. Yes, my mom. Lol(:**

**Also, I am now aware that the link to the image didn't show up. Thank you all for pointing that out. I just wrote "I love you" a bunch of times with different colors, and it came out pretty cool. It is on my Instagram and Twitter, btw, which is in my profile. So if you really want to see it, go there(: **

**Caligirl28- I am not going to specify if he slept with her or not. I am leaving it up to your and other readers' imaginations. Some people think kissing is cheating and some think it is just sex. Does that make sense to you?**

**Thank you for all of the kind reviews! You guys keep me going! Please review!**

**~Laura**


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9:**

Aria looked away from the book she was reading as she heard a key fumble with the lock on the door. She stretched her neck to see Ezra walking in with bags of groceries in his arms. She smiled at him and placed her bookmark in the old novel.

"Hey," she said, walking over to the counter and beginning to unpack all of the groceries, "Had fun shopping?"

"It was alright," he said, walking up to her and turning her head to give her a kiss, "Had fun watching movies with David? Speaking of which, where is he?"

Aria gave a laugh, "He fell asleep after the first thirty minutes. He hasn't been feeling all too well this morning. I think it is his nerves of starting preschool in a few weeks. He asked me a few questions about it during the movie."

"He's going to be in preschool," Ezra said, leaning against the counter as reality hit him. "Can you believe that?"

"No," Aria replied, shaking her head and wrapping her arms around his waist, "And I don't want to even think about it. It scares me. It feels like he should still be an infant, not four years old."

"Maybe it isn't such a bad thing," Ezra shrugged his shoulders, "We have always discussed having another child when he did start school." Aria looked at him, opened her mouth like she was going to say something, and then quickly shut it and went back into the living room. "What was that about?"

"Nothing," she waved her hand in the air as he took a seat next to her on the sofa.

"Aria, please," he said softly, "Don't you want another child? You used to talk about it all the time, remember?"

"Of course, I remember," she said, looking into his blue eyes, "That when all of this wasn't happening. Ezra, believe me, I'd love to have another one of you or me running around the house, but right now isn't the time. Our next therapy session is in three days. We need to stabilize our marriage again before we bring another child into it." She watched as he looked away, processing what she just said.

He sighed sadly and grabbed her hand, "You are right. One step at a time." Aria nodded in response, embracing Ezra lovingly. He squeezed her back tighter, burying his face into her hair. "I love you so much."

"I love you, too," Aria breathed, rubbing up and down his back.

"Mommy," she pulled out of Ezra's embrace at David's cry. "Mommy, come see."

She stood up and walked to his room, "Baby, what's wrong." He pointed to his stomach and let out a small whimper. Aria kissed his cheeks, and put a hand to his head, finding him to be a bit warmer than usual. "Ezra," she called as she looked at her son worriedly, "Get me a thermometer, please."

"Here," he replied, walking into the room after a few minutes, "What's wrong?"

Aria shrugged and stuck the thermometer into his mouth, "I don't know. Maybe what I thought was nerves were really a virus or something. He says his stomach hurts and he is really warm." A beeping was heard as his body temperature was checked. Aria took it out of his mouth and read it aloud, "103.4."

Ezra pushed David's hair back off of his forehead with his hand, "Daddy will go get you a wet washcloth, okay? It's going to be okay, buddy." He glanced at Aria before going into the bathroom and wetting a hand towel. He rung it out and brought it back to his son.

"I gave him a fever reducer and something for vomiting, just in case," Aria told her husband as he put an arm around her to calm her. Every time David had a fever, she freaked out. When he was really little, a new born, he had to stay a week or two in the hospital because of his high body temperature. That was a rough week for the two of them. He also had a seizure one time, and that made Aria almost have a panic attack. It was just terrible.

Ezra kissed David on the head as he put the small cloth underneath his neck to cool him down, "You should fall asleep from your medicine, Dave, but Mommy and I will check on you, I promise."

He nodded his head, "Can you stay with me until I do fall asleep? Could you sing to me?" Aria nodded and leant into Ezra's arms. She grabbed his hand and kissed it softly.

"I remember what you wore one the first day. You came into my life and I thought 'Hey, you know, this could be something'," Ezra squeezed Aria softly in his arms as he cooed the lyrics to "Two is Better Them One" by Boys Like Girls and Taylor Swift to their son. Soon enough, he was breathing deeply and dreaming. Aria gently eased her hand out of David's. Ezra pulled her up and out of the room.

"Do you think he is going to be okay," Aria asked hesitantly as she stood in the hall, still keeping an eye on him.

Ezra pulled her into an embrace and kissed her head softly, "Baby, children get sick all of the time. He is going to be fine. You gave him medicine, and he is sleeping. He is going to be alright, okay?"

She let out a big sigh, "I know, I know, but all of those memories from when he was born and not being able to take him home until two weeks after birth haunt me. I'm scared he will end up back in the hospital." She looked up into his ocean of eyes with worry.

"He is going to be fine. It is just a fever," he repeated to her, "If you worry anymore, you will panic, and if you panic, you will have a panic attack. Didn't you say you got those a lot in high school?"

"Very often," she admitted, placing her hands against his chest, "You're right; I need to calm down. Where is my chill pill?"

* * *

Aria and Ezra were sitting in the living room a couple hours later watching "The Lake House". They checked on David every ten minutes, making sure his fever was going down and not up. He stirred when they checked his forehead, but he never fully woke up. The couple was holding hands and whispering loving things into each other's ear during the movie.

"Momma," a little voice said hoarsely across the room, "Momma, I don't feel so good." Aria hopped up from the couch, Ezra close behind her. They saw David standing in the hallway, looking pale and clutching his stomach.

"Ezra," Aria gasped, as David started to cry. All of a sudden, he lurched forward and got sick.

"Aria, go in our room," Ezra said, pushing her down the hallway away from them. She protested, but Ezra whispered, "You'll make him freak out if you freak out. Go into our room, and I'll take care of this. Do you hear me," he said in a stern voice. She nodded and walked into her bedroom and shut the door. She climbed in bed and waited.

* * *

Ezra tucked David back in bed and gave him a sad smile, "Are you feeling a little better?"

"A little bit," David choked out, "Is Mom okay? I didn't get her sick, did I?"

Ezra shook his head, "No. She is just worried about you. Do you need anything else?"

"I think I'm good," he replied with a yawn, "Thanks, Daddy."

Ezra tapped his chest lightly, "It's my job, son. I love you, David."

"I love you, too," he breathed before turning over and shutting his eyes.

Aria looked up from the sheets she was fiddling with between her fingers as Ezra shut the door behind him, "Is he alright? Did he puke again? Is his fever still really high? Talk to me!"

"Chill out," Ezra put his hands up, "He is fine. Yes, a few more times, but he said he feels better. His fever went down to 101.1. Sweetheart, you need to learn to take deep breaths and calm down. You can't flinch every time he gets sick, okay? It happens. What he has now is just a virus."

Aria put her head in her hands and took a deep breath, "I'm sorry. I just can't help but picture his little face in a room by himself with us staring at him through the glass. He stayed in the hospital for two weeks before coming home. We couldn't even touch him." She felt Ezra wrap his arms around her body and kiss her cheek.

"I remember that all too well," Ezra replied with a sigh, "But we can't let him know we are scared or it will make it worse. I'm scared, too, but I am hoping and praying he will be alright." Aria nodded and kissed Ezra chastely prior to burying her face in his chest.

"It is six thirty, so how about I make your favorite dinner," he asked, lightly tickling her stomach. She giggled and nodded her head.

"Chinese Stir Fry sounds like heaven right now," she smiled as he led her out of their room.

* * *

It neared one o'clock in the morning. The moon was full and bright, casting dark shadows across Ezra and Aria's bedroom floor. Aria was curled into Ezra's side as he had a firm hold around her waist. Their deep and slow breaths filled the room, in sync with one another. Their door squeaked open as David drug his rocket ship blanket with him to Aria's side of the bed. He climbed up gently and looked at his mother and father sleeping. He tapped Aria on the arm lightly, but with just enough force to wake her.

She turned over on her other side, focusing her eyes on a hesitant little boy, "Hey, baby."

"Sorry I woke you up, but I couldn't sleep because I feel sick," David whispered as his eyes got teary, "Are you mad at me?"

Aria slipped out of Ezra's arm and embraced her crying son, "No, no, David. Don't be sorry, honey, it's okay. Wake me up anytime. Do you want to sleep with me tonight?" He nodded and snuggled into his mother's arms. She cradled him as he settled beneath the blankets, whispering a little lullaby in his ear. Ezra shifted slightly, uncomfortable without Aria in his arms. He scooted closer and draped an arm across her waist, spooning her body.

She looked down at David's now sleeping face. She wondered how she got so lucky to have him as her child. She never fully understood what her mother meant when Ella said she was her world until she had David. Right after she gave birth, everything revolved around him. She couldn't imagine watching him go through so much pain again.

Then, she turned her head slightly to catch a glimpse at Ezra breathing in her ear. He is the one who showed her true love. He always made her feel like she was the only person in his world. Of course there was that horrible time when he didn't, but that was once. Out of the whole marriage he only made one wrong, and she was in the process of forgiveness. She couldn't imagine losing him.

"I love my boys," she whispered to their limp bodies as she pushed her thoughts aside and fell into a peaceful sleep.

**Note: Sort of a filler chapter, but it gave you some interesting background on David, which I enjoyed. I feel like he is just as important in this story as Aria and Ezra. I really hope you liked it! And thank you to all of you who followed and favorite me and my stories! I just figured out that my email tells me when someone does that. Took me long enough, right? And thank you to all of my amazing reviews! Sorry for the wait, by the way. I feel like I've neglected all of my readers, and I hope you forgive me. **

**Please review(:**

**~Laura**


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10:**

Ezra woke up, sighing softly as he inhaled the scent of Aria's coconut shampoo. He buried his face in it and kissed her collarbone, causing her to stir slightly. He grinned and continued to kiss her neck as she began to wake up. She placed her hand on top of his that was still draped across her waist.

"Ezra," she whispered, turning her head gently to look at him.

"Good morning," he smiled and brought his lips to hers.

Aria pulled away, "We can't get carried away. Our son is in here." Ezra lifted his head to see David curled up next to Aria with his rocket ship blanket in his hand. Soft, even sighs were heard as they looked at his sleeping form.

"He is asleep," Ezra confirmed as he lightly bit her neck, soliciting a soft gasp from her. Aria elbowed him slightly, causing him to pull away and look at her with a smile.

"We will do this later when we are alone, okay," she suggested as she squeezed his hand.

"Fine," he agreed, scooting closer to her, "I'm holding you to that statement, you know that, right?"

"Wouldn't be the first time," Aria giggled softly as she felt his feet rub against hers playfully. She closed her eyes as they continued to play their little game of footsie, when David's eyes fluttered open. "Hey, sweetie. Are you feeling better today?"

David nodded softly, "Yes, ma'am. Thanks for letting me sleep in here, Momma."

"Anytime," she placed a hand on his head and rubbed it through his hair, "We are always here for you."

"Yeah, David," Ezra chimed in as he placed his chin on Aria's shoulder to look at his son, "If you ever need anything we are here, okay?" David nodded and snuggled back under the sheets and let out a sigh. Ezra and Aria still watched as he closed his eyes once more.

Aria patted Ezra's hand and smiled, "We are going make coffee, sweetheart. You can stay in here and sleep. We will be in the kitchen." The four year old mumbled a response as the couple climbed out of bed and walked out of the room. "I don't have enough energy to walk all the way to the kitchen," Aria whined as she closed the door to their bedroom.

Ezra sighed and squatted as Aria jumped onto his back and wrapped her legs around his waist, "Oh, so you have no energy to walk, but you can still jump. Yeah, okay." Aria giggled as he gave her a piggyback ride all the way there and set her down on the counter. He kissed her passionately before grabbing two glasses from the cabinet and filling them to the rim with coffee.

"So," Aria said as she wrapped her legs around his abdomen, pulling him closer to her, "I was listening to the radio, and I heard that The Fray is coming to Rosewood. I was thinking that maybe we could have another date night?"

Ezra frowned, "They sold out in less than two minutes. I'm sorry."

A look of disappointment appeared on Aria's face, "That's alright. It wasn't your fault. Maybe next time. Instead of going to the concert, we can blast their CD and make our own little concert in the living room. However," Aria said, taking Ezra's drink from his hand and putting it aside with hers, "There is one plus to having the concert in our house."

Ezra smiled mischievously, placing his hands on her waist, "And what is that?"

"The bedroom is a hallway away," she brought her eyes up to his, smiling at him innocently. She cupped his face with her hands and kissed him softly. Ezra tightened his grip around her waist and leaned in farther. She pushed herself to the edge of the cabinet, closing the gap between their bodies.

This time, Ezra pulled away and pressed his forehead to hers, "Do you have any idea how much I love you?"

Aria smiled and kissed his nose, "Well, I love you more than that."

"Well, I love you most," Ezra replied, embracing her tightly.

"Ew," they heard a small squeak from the hallway. Aria smiled up at Ezra and looked over to David's scrunched up face. Ezra chuckled and kissed Aria chastely before pulling away and fixing his son some chocolate milk; his morning routine drink.

"How long have you been standing there, squirt," Aria asked, walking over to David and sweeping him into her arms.

"Just to see you kissing," David said quietly. Aria shook her head and shot Ezra a grin.

"Why do you think us kissing is gross," Ezra asked his four year old as he took him from Aria's arms and gave him a cup, "It means we love each other."

David took a sip of his drink and shrugged his shoulders, "If you say so."

"So how are you feeling," Ezra asked, tickling his neck and causing him to laugh loudly. "No more tummy aches?"

David shook his head and smiled, "No, sir."

"That's great," Ezra replied, giving him a kiss on the cheek and putting him on the floor, "I'm so happy you are feeling better. That means you can help me with something top secret, but you can't tell Mommy," he put his hand up, but Aria heard every word.

"Excuse me," she said, eyeing her husband suspiciously.

David huffed and looked up at his mother, "Momma, this is between me and Daddy."

Aria looked at him unbelievingly. Ezra laughed and nudged her, "Yeah, Momma. Me and David." The brunette punched his arm and watched as they walked into David's room and shut the door.

"Men these days," Aria said softly before going into her bedroom.

* * *

"Tell me. Tell me. Tell me. Tell me," David said as he jumped up and down. "Please, Daddy?"

Ezra looked around the room and leaned closer to David, "You have to promise me you won't mention anything to your mom. Nothing. Promise?" David nodded his head quickly and put his pinky out. "Okay. This weekend, you are going to be going to Uncle Mike's house. Mommy and I are going somewhere special. You cannot tell her."

"I won't," he smiled, "That is the secret?"

"Part of the secret," he said, "But you still can't tell her."

David tapped his chin and looked at Ezra suspiciously, "Well what is the other part? I promise I won't tell."

"Well…."

* * *

"No," Ezra told his wife as they lay in bed, fixing to go to sleep. Aria had been begging him to spill whatever the secret was. She tried to sucker it out of David by baking cookies, but, to Ezra's surprise, he stayed strong. Then, she made Ezra his favorite dinner, but he just thanked her and ate it. The suspense was killing her, and Ezra wasn't going to tell her until it was time.

"Please," she batted her round, hazel orbs at him and kissed his lips, then cheek, then neck.

"Are you trying to seduce me into telling you," he asked as she continued to kiss him.

She looked up at him, "Is it working?"

The truth was, it would if she continued, but he couldn't let her know that, "Nope."

She groaned and lay down on top of him, "Ezra, come on. I am your wife. I am supposed to know things. I'm begging you, please. I'll do anything." She stuck out her bottom lip in a pout. He kissed her lip, causing her to sigh in stress.

He ran his fingers through her hair, "I will tell you after the appointment tomorrow. Okay?" She nodded and kissed him before quickly falling asleep and waiting for the next day.

"So, how have things been," Dr. Parsley asked the couple the next afternoon.

"Good," they said at the same time. Aria smiled and continued, "Everything is going pretty well. There was one night though that didn't go so smoothly, but we worked it out on our own."

"What happened," he asked, watching them intently.

"Her ex showed up at the restaurant we were at," Ezra replied, taking Aria's hand, "I was jealous and she said some things that I needed to hear. She told me she couldn't deal with all of the fighting that was going on and that she couldn't do it anymore."

"He apologized afterward and said he needed to trust me," Aria added, giving his hand a squeeze. "We worked through it."

Dr. Parsley smiled, "I am so proud of you both for doing that. It seems like you are on the road to recovery. I am very happy for you. This is just a checkup, so if there is anything you would like to ask or discuss, now would be the time to do so."

Ezra shook his head and looked over to Aria, who looked like she was contemplating her thoughts, "I might have one."

"Yes," the professional leaned forward, giving her his full attention.

She gulped and looked over to Ezra, "We've talked about having another child before all of this happened. David is four and we think it would be a perfect age gap and everything. I just wanted to know your input on getting pregnant while we are recovering."

"Well, Mrs. Fitz, that is entirely up to you two, but like I have said before, you both are way ahead in recovery. All there is left is trust and forgiveness, which is coming back day by day," he explained to them. "My advice to you is to wait until you both are fully sure that it is what you want and are ready for."

"Thank you," she responded, looking over to Ezra and giving him a small smile, "We will be back next week. Thank you again, Dr. Parsley." They both scheduled another appointment and walked back to their car. Aria kissed Ezra softly and pulled away, "So, tomorrow is Saturday, and I was thinking we could rent movies and be lazy together?"

Ezra smiled at her and shook his head, "Sorry, I can't." Aria was taken aback, but Ezra quickly continued, "I already have plans this weekend."

Aria sat back in her seat and gave him a fake smile to hide her disappointment, "Oh. With who?"

Ezra leaned over and cupped her cheek, "With The Fray and you."

The small brunette's eyes filled with happiness and she jumped over the middle console and hugged him, "I thought you said the concert sold out in less than two minutes?"

"That was because it was true," he said hugging her back, "I was one of the lucky ones and got some first. And I booked a room in the hotel next to it. The bedroom may not be a hallway away, but it is still pretty damn close."

"Thank you so much," Aria pulled back and kissed him fervently, "Was that the secret?" Ezra nodded, causing her smile to broaden, "I love you so much."

"I love you, too," Ezra replied, giving her another kiss before driving home.

**Note: This was all I could squeeze out of my brain at the time. There wasn't much action in this chapter, but that was because I wanted to make it fluffy and sweet. And how do you feel about another Fitz, hmm? I've been thinking about it for a while now, but I am still not sure. Anyway, sorry that this took so long, but I have been so busy and blocked lately. Other updates for other stories will be up soon. Please be patient, guys. I love you all! Please review!**

**~Laura**


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11:**

"Thank you both for doing this for us," Aria smiled warmly at her little brother and his wife, Jennifer. "You have no idea how much we appreciate it."

Mike wrapped an arm around Jennifer, "No need to thank us. I would like to see my godchild, sister, and brother-in-law more often. Just like I am pretty sure you both miss me, Jenny, and Carson."

Aria nodded as she looked over to her two-year-old niece, "I do miss you guys. I'm sorry we haven't been visiting much lately. We've been, um, busy with things."

"It's fine," Jennifer shook her head softly, "Don't apologize. We could've gone over to your house, too, you know. Don't take all of the blame."

Mike glanced over to the clock and stood from his couch, "As much as I want to see you both, I am afraid if you don't leave soon, you will not check in on time. Aria, if you don't mind, though, I would like to talk to you alone for a minute."

"Okay," she nodded and kissed Ezra's cheek, "Wait for me in the car?" He nodded as Jennifer walked him out of the house. "What's wrong, Mike?"

The blonde ran one of his hands through his hair and sighed, "Aria, you know I love you to death, right?"

Aria frowned and walked up to her brother, wrapping her arms around his toned waist, "Yeah, of course I do."

"And you know that I never want you to get hurt," she pulled back, registering what he was hinting.

"You know, don't you," she asked, pulling away and folding her arms, "Mom told you, didn't she?"

Mike put his hands up in defense, "Don't get too upset, Aria. I knew something was up when you missed Jenny's birthday party. I knew Mom would know what was up, so I asked her why you didn't show."

"And she told you," the furious older child interrupted, "Did she tell Dad, too?"

"Would you let me finish," Mike intervened, "She didn't tell me right away. I had to beg her more than once to get it out of her. Look, I just want to know why you stayed with him. He hurt you and broke your trust."

"You don't think I know that," she said, tears springing to her eyes, "I know, and it kills me to think about it. However, I have to take some of the blame for driving him to it. Do you remember how I called you crying over one of our fights," Mike nodded as his sister continued, "That was the biggest one, and the one that caused him to cheat. He hates himself for it, and he regrets it every single day. He tells me all the time he is so sorry, and that he loves me."

Mike looked down, "I know, Aria. He should regret it. For the rest of his life, but you are also not going to forget it for the rest of your life. I know you know that. So, how can you stay with him?"

Aria thought for a moment, knowing her little brother was right. She sighed, about to give up, but then, one thought occurred to her, "I stay with him for all of the things he did right, and don't leave him for the one thing he did wrong." She held a soft gaze with her brother, before rewrapping her arms around him, "Mike, I love that man to death. I get where you are coming from, I do, but I love him too much to leave him, and I know he will never do that again."

Mike placed his head on top of Aria's and hugged her tighter, "I just don't want to see my big sister get hurt again. I love you so much."

"I love you, too," she glanced over at the clock and gasped, "Crap, I have to go. I'll see you later, Mikey!" With a quick kiss on the cheek, she bolted out the door and was soon on her way to her getaway weekend.

* * *

"Why are you so quiet all of a sudden," Ezra poked at her about fifteen minutes into the car ride, "Before we went over to your brother's, you were babbling like crazy and smiling like when you came home from watching 'Magic Mike'." Aria smiled at his statement as he looked over at her, "What gives?"

The dark haired girl looked over to her husband and shook her head, "Nothing." Ezra rolled his eyes at her, causing her to give a soft sigh. She leaned over the middle console and snuggled up to him, "It's nothing, baby. Can't we just leave it at that?" He reluctantly nodded as she kissed his cheek and placed her head in the crook of his neck.

"I just want you to know you can tell me anything that is on your mind," he said, kissing her head, "Are you having second thoughts about us?"

Aria pulled away and looked at him, "No. No, I don't." Ezra glanced over to her and then set his vision back on the road, "Ezra, you are my one and only. Mike knows. That was what he wanted to talk to me about. That is why I am so quiet."

Ezra's eyes went wide, "Damn, did your mother tell the whole family?"

"Darling," Aria placed a hand on Ezra's arm, "If my dad knew about this, you wouldn't be alive."

"I still can't say how sorry I am for that," a look of shame and disappointment came over his face.

"Hey, we are passed that," Aria breathed, but Ezra sighed and glanced over at her.

"Sweetheart, you and I both know that we won't get over this for the rest of our lives," he said softly, grabbing her hand, "I am just going to try and make up for it for the rest of my life."

The small brunette brought his hand up to her lips, kissing them softly, "Ezra, we are going to make it through this. Maybe our marriage isn't perfect, but it is pretty damn close to me. We love each other more than life itself. Can we just be together, you and me, and think about how much we are in love?"

Ezra turned to kiss her and nodded, "I'd really like that. I love you so much, Aria Fitz."

She snuggled back up against him and smiled, "I love you, too, Ezra Fitz."

* * *

A little before nightfall, the couple arrived at the hotel. They quickly checked into their room and brought their bags up to the fourth floor. Since the concert was the following night, the couple would have quality time for the night and the following day. Aria lay down on the bed, hanging her feet off the side and lifting her arms above her head. A few moments later, she felt Ezra climb on top of her, kissing down her neck softly. She sighed contentedly, leaning her head the opposite way to give Ezra more access to her neck. He continued and she felt all of her tenseness melt away. He moved his kisses up her arms, smiling as her eyes stayed shut.

He bit down on her wrist lightly, causing her to smile and wrap her arms around his neck, locking her eyes with his, "God, you are amazing."

He crashed his lips to hers passionately, his tongue dancing with hers. His hands travelled up her arms that were back above her head. The sensation sent chills down Aria's body. She wrapped her legs around his waist, making sure he didn't go anywhere any time soon.

He bit down on her earlobe softly and whispered, "You remember saying the words 'we will do this when we are alone', and I said 'I am holding you to that'?" Aria nodded, knowing where this was headed, "Well, I don't see anyone around but you and me."

"Well, what are you waiting for," she asked, closing the small gap between them once more. Aria felt his hands travel up and down her curves, outlining her body. Her hands traveled down his abdomen, tracing each and every muscle he had. His hands played with the hem of her shirt, lifting it up to reveal her flat stomach. Aria watched as he brought his lips to kiss the newly exposed skin. He looked up at her, seeing his reflection in her lust filled eyes. His eyes reflected the same emotions as she pulled his face back up to hers. Aria's hands roamed to the small of Ezra's back, lifting up the material there as her mouth explored his.

Soon, they were both topless, slowly slipping away from reality. However, they were brought back when Aria's cell phone rang. "No, don't get it," Ezra mumbled against her lips, "I am not allowing you."

"Well," Aria breathed against his, "It might be about our son."

Ezra sighed as she reached over to the bedside table. His lips continued to assault her neck as she answered the phone, "Hello?"

"Hey, sorry to bother you, but how many teaspoons of medicine is David supposed to take," Mike's voice rang throughout the speaker, "I'm so confused right now."

"One, I think," she breathed, but Ezra tickled her softly, causing her to giggle. She tried to muffle it by hitting him gently, but Mike already heard it.

"Oh my God, you guys are doing it, huh," Mike said in a grossed out voice. Before Aria could respond, he continued, "Shit, I am so sorry, sis. I feel so awkward now. I'll, um, let you two get back to…..whatever." The line went dead before Aria could say goodbye. She looked into Ezra's eyes with disbelief.

"What the hell," she giggled, "My brother now knows what we are doing."

"And why do I still not give a damn," he chuckled, moving back to her neck.

"You're right," she agreed after a moment, flipping them over and continuing from there.

**Note: Wasn't much, but I have been so blocked and busy. I love all of you for waiting, though! My very patient readers are amazing! Thank you for all of the reviews! If you have any questions, suggestions, or anything you have to say, please feel free to message me. Thank you guys! Please review! :)**

**~Laura**


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12:**

Aria stretched her arms over her head as she opened her eyes, smiling as she saw a rose on the pillow beside her. She lifted it up and brought it to her nose, taking in the smell she loved most. She sat up slowly, getting used to the morning light. Ezra wasn't anywhere to be seen, which caused Aria to frown slightly. She yawned and stood from the bed, bringing the sheet with her to cover her body. Her feet quietly padded into the bathroom, finding a little note on the laboratory.

_I bet you wondered where I went, right? Well, my dear, you will have to find out for yourself. Find me. I'll be waiting._

_~Ezra_

She smiled to herself, letting the sheet fall to the tile floor. She walked over to her suitcase, pulling out a white, lacey dress. She placed it onto the bed as she grabbed her underwear and slipped it on. She pulled the dress over her head, adjusted it, and walked to the bathroom once again to apply some makeup to go on her scavenger hunt for her husband.

In a matter of minutes, she was all done, her dress flowing down to her mid-thighs with a braided belt around her waist, matching her brown wedges perfectly. Her hair was messily braided and fell over her shoulder. Her makeup was light, just the basics and a bit of mascara. Even though it was so simple, she looked breathtakingly beautiful. She grabbed her phone and walked out of the room, ready to find Ezra.

She walked a little ways down the hall, finding a little arrow taped to the wall. Her eyebrows knitted together, on confusion. She pulled the arrow off the wall and walked further down it, finding another. "Very clever, Fitz. Very clever," she said aloud, following the arrows all the way down to the elevator, where she found one pointing to the last floor. She gave a small laugh and pressed the number "6".

The arrows continued to lead her up a staircase and to a door that said, "Roof". Her smile was back on her face for the hundredth time that morning. One time, she had told him how she found rooftops romantic. However, that was about the time of their first date. He still remembered it to this day, apparently. She pushed the door opened and gasped as she took in the sight around her. There was a blanket set up with a small basket in the middle. Music was playing softly from the radio that sat near the basket. She walked over to the railing surrounding the open space, seeing the city below from a bird's point of view.

"You found me," she turned swiftly around to see her husband, holding a bouquet of roses in his hands.

"It wasn't that hard," she said back, holding up the pile of paper arrows in her hand. He laughed as she walked over to him, taking the roses from him and looking up at him, "Thank you."

"I know there are eleven, but the twelfth one was supposed to be on my pillow this morning," he pointed to the flowers in her hand.

"It was," she confirmed, entwining their hands together as they walked to the railing together and looked out into the city, "God, this is so beautiful."

"I know," he said, not looking at the city, but at her, "Very, very beautiful indeed." Aria blushed as she turned to see Ezra's eyes on her. He realized she caught him staring, so he pulled her into him and looked down at her, "What? I can't help myself. You are just so damn gorgeous." Aria wrapped an arm around his neck, pulling him down for a loving kiss. He grabbed her waist and deepened it just a little before pulling away.

He led her over to the blanket and sat down, pulling her into his lap, "So, I have your favorite breakfast. Strawberries sprinkled with sugar, chocolate chip pancakes, and cold apple juice."

Aria looked at him in disbelief, "Wow. Do you remember everything I tell you? The romantic rooftop date, my favorite breakfast, roses."

"I listen intently to the most important person in my life, yes," he admitted, kissing her cheek softly, causing her to giggle. "I love you."

"I love you, too," she replied, hugging his neck and looking into his eyes. "Now, I'm starving, so let's eat."

Ezra wrapped his arms around Aria, kissing her head softly. She closed her eyes, basking in the love that they shared. That was until the rooftop door burst open. "Hey," a man shouted, causing the couple to turn their heads to him, "The roof is off limits unless you are staff!" He ran toward the two, waving his hands angrily. Aria swiftly grabbed the now empty basket and grabbed Ezra's hand, bolting for the stairs.

"You didn't ask the manager if we could be up here," Aria asked him as they ran.

He shrugged and looked over to her, "It was impulsive!"

"Sorry," she yelled over her shoulder at the employee, "You can eat the left over strawberries! Think of it as a gift!" They didn't stop running until they were in their room, breathing heavily. They looked at each other and burst into laughter, falling to the floor in fits. Ezra calmed down before Aria did, so he crawled over to her shaking body, still emitting giggles. She looked up at him hovering over her body as she placed a hand on his cheek, smiling, "I've missed this. Us. Thank you for this getaway weekend."

"You deserved this weekend, Aria," he said, bringing his nose down to brush with hers, "You always do things for others, so now, it is your turn to relax and be spoiled. And I am totally honored to be the one to do all of the spoiling to you." He brought his lips to her cheek, making a trail of kisses to her ear. "All you have to do is tell me what you want."

She shivered as she felt his little nibbles on her ear lobe, "Well, I really could use a back rub." He pulled back, giving her a sly grin. She raised her eyebrows in question, but he just scooped her into his arms and brought her to the bed. She made him turn around for her to pull off her dress and situate herself face down on the sheets. She gave him the okay, and he situated himself near her. He rubbed one of her lotions on his hands and placed them on her bare back, gently unknotting the tenseness lining her spine. She closed her eyes, loving that her husband knew how to work his hands.

"How does it feel," he whispered as he rubbed up to her neck.

She nodded her head softly, "Amazing," she replied. He dug a little harder, causing a soft moan to escape her lips. He smiled and brought his lips to her back, leaving soft kisses along the lavender scented skin. She smiled, feeling him making her way to her neck. She knew exactly what he was doing, and she wasn't going to stop him anytime soon.

"And what about this," he mumbled against her skin, already knowing the answer.

"Perfect," she responded as he finally reached her hairline. He brushed his lips lightly over her hair, getting her a little frustrated. Then, ever so softly, he blew in her ear. Not being able to take anymore teasing, Aria flipped over quickly and attached her lips to his. He smiled victoriously as she pulled him down on top of her.

They were soon heavily and heatedly making out, caressing each other lovingly. His hands were still massaging her back as they kissed, doing what she had asked him to. She smiled into his mouth, causing him to pull away and looked into her eyes, "What?"

"Just thinking about how much I love you," she responded, reaching up and kissing his nose.

His eyebrows knitted together in confusion, "No, that can't be right, because I was thinking the same thing." She let out a small laugh before cuddling into him. He hugged her tightly to him, savoring the weekend alone with his wife. They hadn't had time away from everything else since David was born, so they were appreciating every second of alone time.

"What time does the concert start," Aria asked, grabbing his hand and playing with his fingers.

"Around eight, I believe," he said, taking a look at the clock on the far wall. "But, around six I am taking you to the restaurant a few blocks away, so I guess we will leave around five-thirtyish."

"What should I wear," she asked curiously as he toyed with her braid.

"You look beautiful in anything," he confessed, pulling her in closer.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," she said sarcastically, "I think I already know what I'll wear."

"What?"

"I can't tell you," she whispered in his ear seductively, "It's a secret."

* * *

"Aria Montgomery Fitz, get your little beautiful ass out here or else we will miss our reservation," he teased as he banged on the door once more. "Seriously though, baby, you have been in there for over an hour. At one point I thought you got sucked into the shower drain."

"Oh, stop being a little whiny baby," she replied, "You need to learn how to relax. We will make our reservation, we will have a great time at the concert, and then we will have an after party in our hotel room. However, the first thing you need to do," she paused to fling the door open and smile at him, "Is tell me how I look."

Ezra stood there in awe, taking in the beautiful woman in front of him. She had on a black strapless dress that hugged her every curve like it was a part of her skin. Down the front was a zipper, when, in just one simple motion, could shed the whole thing at once. Her heels were blood red and made her three inches higher. Her hair was tousled; just the way Ezra liked it. His jaw dropped as she did a little twirl for him. "So, what do you think?"

He stared at her for a few moments more. His mouth opened, then closed, then opened, "Wow." She smiled, making his stomach do a flip. "I also think we should just skip the dinner and the concert and just stay here."

She shook her head softly and walked up to him, "Oh, no, that won't do. This isn't the outfit for staying in all night. The outfit for doing that is underneath this one," she said, pointing to her dress. Ezra swallowed hard, feeling himself become overwhelmed by her. She smiled seductively, knowing exactly what she was doing to him, "Now, if I remember correctly, you were yelling at me to hurry up and finish so we can make the reservation. I'm done, so let's go." She grabbed her purse off the counter, leaving Ezra in the room with his mouth agape. He shook his head swiftly, grabbed the keys off the table, and ran after Aria.

* * *

"Please," Aria begged, grabbing Ezra's hand and looking him in the eyes, "For me?"

Ezra smiled and kissed her lips, "Okay, fine," he grabbed a waitress, "Could we please have a strawberry cheesecake for dessert, please?" The young woman nodded her head softly and went to the back of the restaurant. Aria smiled sweetly at her husband.

"Thank you, baby," she whispered, rubbing circles on his knee underneath the table. "For everything. I know I have said that a lot, but I just want you to know how grateful I am."

"I know, sweetheart," he replied as he wrapped an arm around her, "And thank you."

"For what," she looked at him confusedly.

"For being my world," he breathed softly, making her smile widely, "Without you, I don't know who I would be. I think you bring out the best in me; the real me." She leaned her head on his shoulder as they waited for their desert, which came moments after. Ezra took a little piece of the cheesecake and fed it to Aria. She did the same with him.

"Do you like it," she asked him, watching as he nodded his head. "How about this?" She swiped her finger across the dessert, taking a little bit of chocolate syrup and smeared it on his nose. They laughed softly, enjoying each other's company.

"Actually I do," he replied, "I think you would, too. Here, have some," he said, rubbing his nose all over her face, causing her to giggle uncontrollably. He also added a little more from his fingertips, making her squeal. A few heads in the restaurant turned their way, smiling as they saw them together.

"Ezra Michael Fitz," she said putting a hand to her sticky, chocolaty face, "How do you expect me to get this off in the next five minutes? We have to leave soon."

"Like this," he replied, kissing her cheeks to get the syrup off her face. She just laughed the whole time, watching a few people in the booths next to them blush for her. He unattached his lips from her face a few seconds later, "How is that?"

She felt her face and took out her pocket mirror from her purse, inspecting the damage, "That actually worked effectively. Nice work. Your turn," she said, kissing the sweet sauce off his nose until it was completely off. As she pulled away to look at him, she noticed him staring at her, "What?"

"You still have a little bit of chocolate right there."

"Where," she asked, putting her hands to her face. He pulled her hands away and brought his lips to hers. They kissed briefly, knowing they were still in public. A few seconds later they pulled apart. "There."

* * *

"Do you want a drink before we go and find our seats," Ezra asked as they walked by a concession as they entered the building where the concert was being held. Aria nodded and grabbed his hand as he led her toward the alcohol stand. They bought two wine coolers and set off to find their seats, which were, ironically, in Section B and seats 26 and 27. They quickly took their seats, cuddled into one another, and listened as The Fray began playing. After a few of their songs, the crowd started to become crazy. Everyone was one their feet, including Aria and Ezra.

"Can you see," Ezra asked Aria in her ear as they sang "You Found Me". She shrugged her shoulders casually and shook her head. "That's a lie. Come on," he crouched down softly and grabbed her hands. "Hop up."

"No," Aria screamed over the music.

"Just get on my shoulders, would you," he said loudly. She climbed onto them, squealing as he stood all the way up. She held his hands as the song continued. The concert lasted for about two hours. The couple were sitting back down, Aria sitting in Ezra's lap. He kissed her cheek as they announced their last song, "Happiness".

"Would you like to dance," Ezra whispered in her ear, "This is our song, after all."

"Of course," she replied, standing up and wrapping her arms around his neck. He settled his around her waist, leaning his head down and resting it on top of hers. A few people around them watched as they danced together, admiring the love they shared. "I love you so much, Aria," Ezra stated, tightening his embrace around her.

"I love you, too," she replied, looking into his blue eyes. He brought his lips down to hers as they kissed passionately. He ran his fingers through her hair, continuing to assault her lips with his own. She kissed him back with just as much passion, pulling at the nape of his neck.

"_Happiness is like the old man told me._

_Look for it, but you'll never find it all_

_Let it go, live your life and leave it_

_Then one day, wake up and she'll be home_

_Home, home, home"_

**Note: There you go. This took forever to write, and I honestly don't know why. I guess I was busy with getting school supplies, reading mandatory books for school, and all that good stuff. Anyway, I have just been so busy. I apologize for the wait. I apologize for any mistakes. I know it has been forever and a day since I have updated. I will also rant in the next paragraph, so if you don't want to read it, just please review:)**

**Rant: I was in tears for the last episode. When the words, "Ezra gets her pregnant" fell from Wesley's mouth, my hand flew to my mouth and I freaked out. I wanted her to walk away when Ezra begged her to come inside with him. My heart would've broken in two if she had walked away, but that was what I would've done. Also, she had to find out from his brother, not him. Yeah, she didn't tell him about Jenna or A for a long time, but that was to protect him from getting killed by Mona. He didn't tell her about Jackie or Maggie. Why? To protect himself. Just had to get that off of my chest, so there you have it. Please review:)**

**~Laura**


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13:**

Ezra opened his eyes and smiled as Aria's face swam into his vision. Even though they had been together for over five years, he never gets tired of waking up to her in the morning. He always cherishes the fact that she is the first person he sees in the morning. He lifted his finger and traced her chin, causing her eyes to flutter open.

"Good morning," she said in a soft voice, looking up at him with gleaming eyes.

"It is a good morning, isn't it," he replied, running his finger down her bare arm and entwining their fingers, "I had such a great time with you this weekend, you have no idea."

"I had an amazing time, too," Aria scooted her face a little closer to his, only to rub her nose against his lovingly.

"Good," he replied, kissing the tip of her nose, soliciting a giggle from her, "How about I make us some breakfast?"

The brunette shook her head and wrapped her arms tightly around him, "No. How about you stay right here and hold me?" Ezra kissed her head as she snuggled into him.

"That sounds a lot better than my idea," he agreed, rubbing up and down her back, giving her goose bumps. He sighed peacefully as she began to draw hearts on his chest, trailing them up to his mouth. He smiled and brought his lips down to hers, giving her a long, passionate kiss. They pulled apart a minute later, breathlessly smiling at one another.

"Aria," Ezra said, a few minutes later, looking into her eyes.

"Yes," she said, giving him a smile that was big and pearly.

He looked away hesitantly, brushing away the serious look he had on his face that she didn't seem to notice, "I just wanted to tell you that you mean the world to me, and that I never want to lose you." He returned the smile she was giving him and kissed her one last time before pulling her into his arms and resting his chin on her head. _"I can't tell her now," _he thought to himself, as he rubbed up and down her spine.

* * *

"Momma, Uncle Mike brought me to the store, and he bought me 'Toy Story'," David said through the phone as Aria and Ezra made their way back home. "He even got me buzz light year!"

"Wow," Aria smiled, missing the sound of her son's voice, "Uncle Mike was very good to you this weekend, huh?"

"Yes, ma'am," he replied, "You and Daddy are coming back today?"

"Yes, baby, we are on our way to you right now," she told him, grabbing Ezra's hand and squeezing it softly, "We should be there in about twenty minutes, okay?"

"Okay," he sighed, "I miss you, and love you. Daddy, too." Ezra overheard their conversation and smiled brightly looking over to Aria.

"We miss and love you, too, sweetheart," she cooed into the phone, "We will see you in a little while. Bye, honey." She waited for David to hang up the phone before putting her phone back in her lap. "I know it has only been three days, but I miss our baby so much right now." Ezra nodded in agreement, rubbing his thumb absentmindedly on the back of her hand.

"I don't know how we will deal with him going to school in a few weeks," he stated, making Aria's eyes go wide in fear. "Hey, we'll be fine, okay? He will be fine."

"Maybe you will be fine, but I'm used to cuddling up to him all day and having him around me all the time," she explained, looking over to him with fear, "I don't know how I will deal with being alone in the house."

"Baby," Ezra began, squeezing her hand tightly, "You will be alright. I promise. Just calm down, okay? I don't want you getting all worked up over something that far in the future."

"You're right," she replied, relaxing a little bit. "You are right."

"Oh, I know," he joked, causing her to hit him playfully on the arm, then cuddling up next to them for the remainder of the ride.

* * *

"What do you want to do tonight Dave," Ezra asked from the driver's seat as they made their way back from Mike's house. "Get a movie, ice cream, or whatever you want. You name it."

David shifted in his booster seat, contemplating his options, "Ice cream, please. Are you coming Mommy?"

Aria turned around in her seat to face him, a smile on her face, "Wouldn't miss it for the world. And besides, I have been craving a giant bowl mint and dark chocolate."

"You and me both," Ezra agreed, glancing Aria's way. A high-pitched ring came from his phone set on the middle console. He hurriedly grabbed it, looked at the caller id, and pressed ignore. Aria eyed him suspiciously and turned back around in her seat.

"Who was that," Aria asked, crossing her arms over her chest, "I have never seen you so nervous to answer a phone call before in my life."

He cleared his throat and brushed it off, "It was just a stupid toll free call. I've been getting them a lot lately." Aria nodded her head, letting the topic go, which Ezra was greatly relieved. _"I'll have to tell her soon. I can't keep it from her any longer." _

"What's wrong, baby," Aria asked, noticing his arm shaking slightly on the middle console. She grabbed his hand and squeezed it, bringing him out of his thoughts.

"Nothing. It's nothing," he replied, squeezing her hand back as he brought it up to his mouth and kissed it.

"Okay," she said, beginning to get a little curious as to why he was acting so strange. She cleared her throat after a few minutes of silence, "So, baby, what do you want when we get there?"

"Cookies and cream," he yelled excitedly from the backseat, "And they better put some cookies in it, or I will be mad." Aria stifled a laugh and turned to look out the window.

* * *

"Ezra, please tell me what's wrong," Aria begged him as they got back to the house. David fell asleep on the way home, so they put him to bed and were now in their bedroom. "I know when something is bothering you."

"Aria, could you just leave it alone," he asked her, looking over to her as he unbuttoned his shirt.

She shook her head, stood from the bed, and walked up to him, staring him in the eyes, "No. No, I won't leave it alone. I want you to tell me what is going on with you right now. We promised no secrets, remember?" She watched as he ran his fingers through his hair, taking in a deep breath. His phone began to ring in his pocket. He took it out and pressed ignore, just like he had in the car. "Who is calling you like that, Ezra?"

"Aria-," he started, but closed his mouth and walked over to their closet.

She let out a breath of frustration and clapped her hands to her side, "Fine." She walked over to the bedside table, grabbed her purse and keys, and began to storm out of the room. Ezra saw what she was doing and grabbed her arm, pulling her back into the room. "You either tell me, or I will walk out of this house right now."

"Okay," he said, walking her over to the bed and sitting down next to her. He took a deep breath and looked into her eyes, "A few weeks ago, I got a call from Dr. Johnson. He told me I needed to come down to his office to get a checkup. So, I went on Saturday of last week, and he asked how I was doing and everything. I told him about my changes of mood and how I began to get a slight tremor in my arm."

"Okay," she said, nodding her head, "So has he diagnosed you with something yet?"

"He told me he would get back to me this week, which is why my phone has been going off all day. I know it is him, but I am too scared to answer. What if it is Parkinson 's disease? What will happen to you and David if I am not fully here? The look on his face told me that this was serious."

"Look at me," Aria said, tilting his head up to he was looking into her hazel orbs, "We will get through whatever you have or don't have together, but you have to answer that phone call. Whatever happens, I will stay by your side."

"Have I ever told you how much I love you," he asked, pressing his forehead to hers.

"A few times," she replied with a small smile. "Let's call him back together, okay?" Ezra nodded and took out his cell phone, dialing the missed call. After a few rings, Dr. Johnson picked up.

"Hi, this is Ezra Fitz returning your call," he told him, holding Aria's hand tightly for support.

"Yes, Mr. Fitz, I was calling to tell you that we have a diagnosis," he said, "I recognized the symptoms you have to be the symptoms of Muscular Sclerosis." Aria's hand clenched Ezra's harder, causing her knuckles to turn white. "Now, I think that you are among one of the lucky ones who will have a few short attacks of tremors or mood swings and then recover quickly. Since we know what you now have, we will ask you to come down again later this week, okay?"

"Okay, thanks doc," Ezra hung up the phone, noticing the tears streaming down Aria's face, "Hey, it's going to be alright. You heard what he said; I might be one of the lucky ones. Aria, we are going to get through this."

"How do you know for sure," she choked out through her tears.

"Because I am not only fighting this disease for me," he said, pulling her into his lap, "I am fighting it for you and David, too. There is no way in hell that I will let this ruin what I have with the two of you."

"I love you so much," she said, hugging him closer than she had before.

"I love you, too," he said, kissing her forehead as they continued to embrace.

**Note: Don't hate me. I know you have all been waiting for this. I have been just so blocked! I have gotten on my laptop, opened up Microsoft Word, and just stared at a blank paper for over an hour. Plus, school has been so overwhelming and afterschool activities are biting me in the ass, so it is hard to set aside time to write. Don't worry, though, I will make me a schedule. And what the hell is Toby doing, being on the A-team and sh**. Seriously? I screamed. **

**Any 'ole way, please review! It will make me write and update faster. Thank you all for being patient. I love you all so much for putting up with me and my rants and my problems and my stories(: REVIEW! **

**~Laura**

"Okay," he said, walking her over to the bed and sitting down next to her, "


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14:**

It was nearing three o'clock in the morning. Aria was curled up on Ezra's lap, her tears that lay on her cheeks dried up. Ezra was twirling a strand of hair around his finger, listening to the light rain pouring outside. It had been a few hours since they had gotten the phone call, confirming that Ezra has muscular sclerosis. They cried together for a while and eventually ran out of tears. So they just scooted back on the bed, draped a blanket over them, and just laid together in silence; not being able to form any words.

"I used to think rainy nights were romantic," Aria whispered playing with the collar of Ezra's shirt. "Now I just think they are bad news for us."

Ezra sighed softly, kissing her cheek, "Baby, it is just a coincidence. Plus, I remember a few certain nights where the lights cut off and we had a great time." Even when it felt like their world was falling apart, he could always find a way to make her smile.

"I'm serious," she said after another second, "I don't want to lose you again."

"You won't," he breathed into her ear, rubbing his nose against her hairline, "I'd never leave you or Dave behind again. Ever. I made a promise to you that that would never happen."

"Yeah, but you can't control-," Aria began, but Ezra placed his finger to her lips, silencing her from going any further.

"I promised," he repeated, retracting his finger away from her mouth.

She sighed, snuggling her head into the crook of his neck. They became silent again, lost for words once more. The brunette lifted her eyes to meet her husband's, whispering a soundless "I love you" to him. He smiled sadly and brought his lips down to hers for a soft, assuring kiss. "Go to sleep, sweetheart. We will discuss this again when you wake up."

Ezra kissed Aria on the cheek as she closed her tired and heavy eyes; partly from the crying, partly from the lateness, and partly from the stress. A few minutes later she was breathing heavily and her body went limp in Ezra's arms. He rubbed her arm lovingly as he closed his eyes. Even though he knew it was no use to try and sleep, he wanted to be still.

A few minutes later, he felt a little hand pull on his arm, ever so gently. His eyes opened to see David, standing near him with his rocket ship blanket in his hand. "Hey, Dave. What are you doing up so late, little man?"

"I had a bad dream," he said, clutching his blanket tightly in his hands.

"Oh," he said, placing Aria gently on the side of him. He pulled her sheets up all the way to her shoulders, kissed her head, and slid out of their bed. David reached up as Ezra scooped him into his arms, "Come on, buddy. Let's go tuck you back in."

"Daddy," he said once they were back in his room, "Could you hold me?"

Ezra looked at the slight fear that was still in his eyes from the dream. He kissed him on the head and brought him over to the rocker in the corner of the room, "It had to have been one bad dream." David nodded his head, snuggling into his father's neck.

"Can you sing to me," he asked meekly, letting out a small yawn.

Ezra smiled with a small chuckle, "Baby, you know your mother can sing way better than me."

"I want you to do it," he clarified, looking up at him with big puppy dog eyes.

"Okay, okay," he said, letting David lay on his chest as he rubbed his back, "What day is it? And in what month? This clock never seemed so alive. I can't keep up, and I can't back down. I've been losing so much time." He began to softly whisper "You and Me" by Lifehouse, comforting his son in his arms. "Cause it's you and me and all of the people with nothing to do, nothing to lose. And that's you and me and all of the people, and I don't know why I can't take my eyes off of you." By the time Ezra finished the song, David was fast asleep in his arms. He looked down at his son who was carefree; dreaming peacefully in his little mind that had yet to learn and explore everything he would soon grasp. He pushed the four year old boy's mess of hair, letting Ezra get a good view of himself from whenever he was that age.

"I love you so much, little man," he whispered, feeling his eyes becoming wet. He placed a kiss on David's head before gently placing him back into his bed. "Daddy will always love you. I will always be there for you. I will always be proud of you. No matter what happens, remember that."

He looked at his son for a second longer before leaving out of the room. He barely made it to the end of the hall before he hit the floor, sobbing into his hands silently. He placed his head in his hands, quietly rummaging through his thoughts and whispering to himself, "You have to overcome this. You can't let this control you. You need to be there for your son and for your wife. You have to fight this." He wiped the tears from his face and folded his hands in his lap, _"Please, please hear me, God. I know I have made a lot of mistakes, horrible mistakes, and I also know I don't go to you often enough except when I need you, which is entirely wrong. I just really don't want to see Aria go through another tragedy because of me. I want to be there for my wife and for my son to the fullest. I know I don't deserve the help, but Aria and David do. I'm not going to ask you to heal me, because that is selfish, but please help us get through it. For my family."_ He got up from the floor as he finished, walking into the living room, where he stayed for the night.

* * *

Aria's eyes opened slightly, seeing an empty space beside her. She sighed softly, all of the memories from the night before flooding back to her. The brunette looked around the bedroom and into their open bathroom. After no sign of her husband in either place, she threw on her robe and made her way across the house. As she entered the living room, she saw Ezra, who was lying on the sofa and staring out of the window.

"Hey," she said in a groggy voice, "You look really tired. Did you sleep at all last night?" He glanced up at her with heavy eyes and she nodded in understanding, "Right. How could you get any sleep?" She sat beside the sofa, placing her face in front of his. Her fingers lightly traced the stubble on his face, causing a soft smile to form on his face. He grabbed her hand and kissed it.

"Everything will work out," he assured the both of them, "You'll see."

"I know," she replied, reaching her hands around his body and squeezing him tightly, "You are strong, and you have me supporting you every step of the way. You can do anything, Ezra. I'm not just saying that because I am your wife. I am saying that because I see who you are, and when you are determined to do something, you do it."

"You are the most amazing person in the world," he told her, stroking her hair lovingly. "I love you so much."

"I love you, too," she said, closing her eyes tightly as they continued to hug.

"What is happening," they both looked at the end of the sofa, seeing a wide eyed four year old boy looking at his parents with alarm, "Why didn't Daddy sleep?"

Ezra sat up, motioning for him to come and sit on his lap, which he did immediately, "Daddy is sick at the moment, buddy. I might be really sick, and right now we are trying to find the right stuff to fix me."

"But why," he asked, getting tears in his shining sapphire eyes, "How sick are you?"

"I don't know, Dave, but I know that I will be okay," he said, bouncing the little boy up on his knee, "I'll be fine. You don't have to worry."

"Yes, I do," he said quietly, "You are my Dad, and I love you. I hope you get better."

Aria smiled sadly at David, and then at Ezra, "He got you there, honey."

"I love you, too," he said, kissing his son on the head. He pulled Aria up next to him and wrapped his arms around them both, "I love you both, so much. Too, much."

* * *

"You're already back," Aria asked from the kitchen as she pulled out ingredients to make lunch.

"Yeah," Ezra replied, taking his shoes off and walking over to her, "David didn't waste any time running up to Henry's room, and Mrs. Johnson looked like she was busy, so I didn't want to intrude on whatever she was doing." He kissed her cheek as she closed the cabinet.

"So, is he spending the night, or is it just a play date," the brunette asked as she bent down to one of the lower pantries, in search of a mixing bowl. As she was rummaging through all of the different sorts of bowls, she felt a pair of hands snake around her waist and lock on her stomach.

"Either way it is going to be a play date for us," he whispered in her ear, causing her to giggle lightly. All of a sudden, he pulled her off of the ground as if she weighed nothing, swinging her around, and finally placing her on the countertop. "I think it would be nice to keep up this mood instead of the other. How about we bake a cake for lunch instead of a boring salad?"

"Okay," she agreed, tossing the head of lettuce behind her with a smile on her face, "But we have to bake it together."

"Fine with me," Ezra said, pulling the extra rubber band from around her wrist and pulling her hair up into a high ponytail.

Aria astonishingly looked at her reflection in the microwave, "How are you so good at this?"

"Well, you used to get drunk a lot, remember," he asked with slight amusement in his voice.

"Bull," she punched him playfully in the arm, "You were the one who was getting me drunk all the time."

"Only because I wanted to practice doing your hair for moments like this," he answered her with a boyish smile.

"Mhmmm," she said, putting a finger on his nose lightly, "Okay, Mr. Prince Charming. Let's see if you can bake a cake."

Ezra scoffed and crossed his arms, mocking offense, "It is on to see who can bake the best cake. And who can do it fastest. Oh, I am going to prove you wrong."

Aria smiled and hopped down from the counter, "Bring it."

They began to scurry around the kitchen, grabbing random cake mixes from their pantries. "No," Aria laughed, bumping Ezra out of the way. He punched the box out of her hand and grabbed her waist, pulling her out of the way. "That was not fair!"

"We never assigned rules," he said, pushing her away as he made his way to the mixing bowls. He quickly poured the mix in with all the proper ingredients. Then, he took the mixer and turned it on low, but Aria came up behind him and pressed the highest setting, causing chocolate batter to fly all over him and the kitchen.

Aria's loud laugh rang out of the silence. Ezra turned and looked at her. "No rules?"

"Well if there is no rules, then I can do this," he grabbed a handful of chocolate and smeared it on her face, soliciting a soft squeal form her. Now, it was his turn to laugh.

"You think this is funny," she asked, looking at him with amusement, "Uh huh. Come and kiss me, honey. Come on. I want a big fat kiss!" She grabbed his neck and rubbed her face all over his. They were both laughing uncontrollably as they continued throwing and rubbing ingredients all over each other. "You like that, huh, baby?" Ezra asked her, putting a finger full of chocolate into her mouth.

"Not as much as I like you, Mr. Fitz," she said, doing the same with her finger and sticking it into his mouth.

"And I like you just as much as you like me, Mrs. Fitz," he said, giving her a gentle kiss on her lips.

"Then, that is love," Aria confirmed with a smile.

"It's love," he repeated, giving her another kiss.

"You know this will take forever to clean up, right?"

"Don't ruin the moment."

**Note: I feel like I have neglected all of you:( You have been so patient with me. So, here is a mushy gushy paragraph about how you guys are amazing. Firstly, you review and tell me your honest opinions which make my writing better. Secondly, you all keep reading every chapter and checking for updates. Last month I had so many views, I almost cried. I find that to be amazing. I just love you guys for taking time out of your life to read what I put on here. It just makes me happy all the time to know people enjoy my writings and support me. Thank you very much. Please review:) **

**~Laura **


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15:**

The smell of Clorox and melted rubber filled the small room. Aria glanced over at Ezra, who sat on the examining chair with his head in his hands and feet nervously kicking the small stool in front of it. They had been sitting in the little room for almost twenty minutes, causing their nerves to twist and fidget even more than they already were. The ride to the doctor's office was long and tiring after the very fun night they had together. They were immediately assigned a room, the nurse hurriedly came and asked the basic and mandatory questions, and have been waiting for the doctor ever since.

Ezra believed it was because something bad had occurred and they just didn't want to tell him, but Aria knew he was just over thinking things. She let out a sympathetic sigh and stood from her chair, walking up to Ezra and rubbing her hands along his spine. "Hey, you," she said as Ezra lifted his head form his hands and looked into her eyes, "I know what you are thinking, but trust me, the reason it is taking so long is because Dr. Harmon is busy, not because of something terrible. Just take a deep breath, relax, and think about positive things, okay? There is no need to think about bad things that aren't going to happen, is there?"

"No, ma'am," he whispered softly, placing his hands on her hips and pulling her closer to him, "I'm sorry, but you know how I get when I am scared." He told her, fear etched into his blue sapphire eyes.

"Baby, it will be okay," she said, placing a hand on her husband's cheek. He smiled softly and placed his hand on top of hers. Just as they were leaning in for a kiss, the door opened and they quickly broke apart, "Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Fitz. Terribly sorry for the long wait," Dr. Harmon, a tall, blonde headed man told them with a smile, "One of the other patients needed to be tended to." Aria looked back over to Ezra with an "I told you so" look before sitting back in her seat. He let out a small relieved laugh.

"Okay, so Mr. Fitz, as you know, we have studied your file and test and confirmed you do have Multiple Sclerosis, but it is not as severe as most people. Multiple Sclerosis is a disease that affects your nervous system. There are many different symptoms. You have mentioned a slight tremor in your hands, due to a tingling in them. That is one of the many symptoms people with this disease have. Has anything else been going on that you think I should know about?" He looked to Ezra with a pen in hand.

Ezra breathed in deeply and rubbed his face, "Well, I guess I have been feeling a little down lately, also."

"He hasn't been himself for a while now. I just thought it was something due to our personal life, but this could very well be a cause," Aria looked at Ezra with concern and turned back to the doctor.

"It could very well be," Dr. Harmon told the couple as he wrote down some notes on his clipboard. "Okay, well, the good news is I have found some vaccines that are very good and have been the most helpful in my studies. Bad news is that your insurance company is only able to pay partially, leaving you with a good bit of money to pay."

Aria looked up at Ezra once more, who just shrugged and looked at the doctor, so she took charge, "Well, is it necessary that we start this treatment now? Can it wait a while? We were thinking about placing our son in preschool in a few months. It's a private school, so we have to pay four-hundred dollars a month to send him there in advance."

"I would advise you to start the treatments now so it won't have time to progress," Dr. Harmon calmly explained. "From all of the studies I have done, I have discovered that it is very good to start treatments early. The vaccination cannot cure the MS, but it can help delay physical disability progression and reduce flare-ups."

Ezra sighed softly as Aria placed her head in her hands. "Okay, doc, how much does it cost," he asked.

Dr. Harmon took a seat in the small rolling chair near the door, "The original cost of the medication was about twenty-four thousand dollars," Aria and Ezra's eyes widened in shock, "The insurance you are under was able to cover most of it, but there is still four thousand dollars left out. You would have to pay the four thousand."

"Four thousand dollars," Ezra whispered in disbelief, "That is a lot of money." He looked over to his wife who had a blank expression on her face. This was one of the few times he couldn't tell what she was thinking. He looked back to the doctor and sighed softly, "Look, this was incredibly generous of you to get the vaccines ahead of time, but I don't think we can affo-," Ezra was cut off by Aria's voice.

"We will take them," Aria told the doctor, not bothering to look at her husband's awed expression, "It may take a couple months to pay it, but we will pay it."

"Okay," the professional responded, "That is fine. I will be right back with the vaccinations. I will give one shot today and you will see me after one week. When I get back, I will tell you the need-to-know things. One moment."

As soon as the door closed, Ezra opened his mouth, "Aria, you can't be serious about this. Right now I am on vacation from my job. We just took a trip out of town to go see a concert. David is going to be in preschool in a few months. Our paychecks are just enough to pay off everything as it is. Baby, we won't be able to afford this."

The brunette turned her tearful eyes toward her husband, "Yes, we will be able to afford it. Ezra, you need this. I can't sit at home every day watching you get worse when there is something out there that can slow this thing down. I will pay a little bit every month, and sooner or later, it will be paid off. I will get another job, too. Everything will work out, okay?" Just as Ezra was going to respond, the doctor walked back into the room, holding a box of syringes, prefilled with medicine.

"Okay, time for some explaining," he began, pointing to the labels on the box, "As you can see, this box is labeled by weeks. The first week, you will receive a little injection of Avonex, the drug used to treat the disease. The second week, you will get a little more, and the third, a little more. On the fourth week, you will be able to handle the full injection. Now, today I will give you the first injection. Then, one week from now, you need to come back here so I can see if you can inject yourself or have Aria do it, whichever you prefer. The most common side effect is flu-like symptoms. You can take a couple of over-the-counter pain relievers and fever reducers if needed. Okay? Any other questions?"

"I think that's all we need right now," Ezra shrugged and looked over to Aria who did the same.

"I'll contact you if I need to tell you anything else, and if you need me, call me. That is the most important thing, alright?" The couple nodded softly. "Great. Okay, Ezra, let's get to it then. Hold out your arm, please," he grabbed the syringe from the "Week 1" part of the box and a cotton ball full of alcohol, rubbing along Ezra's arm. "Oh, and every time you inject it, stick it in a different muscle, so it won't get too tender." He placed the needle on his forearm and gently pushed it under the skin, causing Aria to flinch from across the room.

"So, is that all we need today," Ezra asked as the doctor put a Band-Aid over the small hole in his skin.

"Yes, sir," Dr. Harmon said softly, disposing the empty syringe, "I will keep the rest of the shots until next week, then, you may take them home. I will see you in seven days. Call if you need me."

"Okay, thank you," Aria said, standing to shake his hand.

"Yes, thank you," Ezra repeated, doing the same, walking out of the small room and to the car.

The whole ride home was silent. Aria sat in the passenger seat, chipping her nail polish off her fingernails and staring blankly out of the window. Ezra kept his eyes on the road, waiting for Aria to initiate a conversation, but it never came. Soon they were home, and as soon as they got inside the house, Aria headed straight to the couch. She let out an exhausted sigh and sat down, pulling her knees into her chest.

Ezra walked over to her and knelt down in front of her, "Hey. I think it is time we talk about this. We avoided it on the way home, but now, I think we should discuss this before David gets home."

Aria patted the spot next to her, signaling for him to come and sit by her. He did so and grabbed her hand as he began to speak, "Sweetheart, I know that you think we will be able to afford this, but-," Aria squeezed his hand softly.

"I know we will be able to afford this. I already told you. I will get a second job. I already have the online journal, and I could work nights someplace, cleaning or whatnot. We will be fine."

"I can't ask you to do that for me," he reasoned with her, but it was no use.

"You didn't. I'll be okay, and so will you," she said, wrapping her arms around him, "All I care about is you. If this is the only way I can help you with this, then I am happy to do it. As long as I know you are getting what you need. I just love you so much."

Ezra kissed her head and hugged her tighter, "I love you, too, Aria. I will be okay. I promise."

"I know you will," she replied, lifting her head up to give him a kiss. He brought his hand to her cheek, caressing it as they continued. As the kiss deepened, Aria swung her leg over his lap, straddling him as he rubbed his hand up and down her back. Their make out session was getting a little heated until Ezra pulled away, his eyes closed and nose scrunched. "What's wrong? Did I hurt you," Aria asked, climbing off of his lap.

"No, I just feel nauseous all of a sudden," he said, clutching his stomach tightly. "I don't know what happened." Aria placed her hand on his forehead, feeling warmth radiating from it. She brought her lips to his cheeks, feeling warmth there, too.

"It feels like you have a fever. Come on," she said, pulling him off the couch, "Go to the bathroom while I go and get the thermometer." She watched him as he disappeared into their bedroom. She quickly rummaged through their medicine cabinet, grabbing a thermometer and some Tylenol. Then, she made her way to her husband, who was lying down on their bed. "Here," she placed the thermometer in his mouth, patiently waiting for the results. A small beeping noise filled the room as Aria took the instrument from his mouth. "102.3. Okay. Here is some medicine. This is what Dr. Harmon said you would have."

"Damn. Why did he have to be right," Ezra breathed, tossing the pills into his mouth and swallowing, "I hope this doesn't last too long."

Aria climbed in bed next to him and brushed her fingers through his hair, "Well, if it makes you feel any better, I think you will be feeling fine tomorrow afternoon. You already know I'm always right," she teased, moving her hands down to his chest.

"Well, I am looking forward to tomorrow afternoon, because I will gladly finish what we started in the living room," he whispered softly as a grin appeared on his face, "And you know why? Because I'm going to be better."

"And who gave you that bit of information," Aria asked, a smile growing on her face.

"Let's just say this beautiful woman whom I love so much," he explained.

"Oh, me," she smiled triumphantly, placing a kiss on his cheek.

**Note: So sorry for the extremely long wait. Many things are going on in my life right now. First of all, I had to do tons of research on Muscular Sclerosis to make sure I didn't get anything wrong. That was partially the problem. **

**However, there was one major thing that affected me badly. One of my friends committed suicide a few days ago. She did this because of bullying and depression. I cannot tell you the heartache I am feeling right now. I have something serious I want to tell all of you. No matter what you go through in life, always give yourself tomorrow. No one and nothing is worth taking your life for. Please always remember that. Death is so final. I can never get her back. I know I am a random girl on the internet, writing stories for you, but I still like to think of all of you as my friends. Each and every one of you means a lot to me, even though I haven't met you. If you need to talk, please message me. I am a really good listener, I promise. But please, please, please never give up on yourself. And if you are bullying someone, please stop. You have no idea what you are really doing to that person. If you are being bullied, put a stop to it. Tell someone. Reach out. Please.**

**Thank you so much for reading and hopefully reviewing. Sorry for any mistakes. Hope you enjoyed. I love you guys.**

**~Laura**


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16:**

A soft chiming sound echoed throughout the living room, waking Aria up from a long, and much needed, nap. She stretched her arms over her head as she listened to the soothing sound of the light rainfall. It seemed like with all of the stress of having to deal with therapy, her own problems, David, and Ezra's new sickness, she could barely find enough time for herself. She used to be able to just sit quietly for a while, take a nap, or read a book during the day, but she hadn't been able to do that for what seemed like months on end. Sure, she loved tending to her boys, but sometimes all she wanted was to experience peace and quiet by herself. Since it has been so long since she had, she could feel the stress build up into kinks in her neck and muscle aching. She sat up slowly, placing her head in her hands as she sorted through her thoughts. The clock chimed again minutes later, causing her to see that she had been sleeping for about three solid hours.

She stood, but her hand flew to her lower back, feeling a sharp pain shoot through it. "Crap," she mumbled to herself as she walked toward her bedroom. Since she was asleep, she hadn't checked on her husband in a while, so she decided that a quick peek won't hurt anything. In fact, it would ease her mind a little. She quietly padded down the hallway, reaching her bedroom door. As she opened the door, she found Ezra sitting up in bed with his reading lamp on and a book in his hands. Obviously, he was feeling a bit better. As he saw Aria standing near the door, he smiled and motioned for her to come in.

"Why hello there, Mrs. Sleepyhead," Ezra chuckled, placing his book down as Aria gently walked over and eased herself into the bed. He placed his arm around her as she snuggled into his side. "You know, it was a good thing I was awake when Mrs. Johnson got here with David. If they were waiting for you to wake up, they would've been soaked by now."

"I actually slept through David's persistent knocking," she asked in surprise, "Damn, I must have been sleeping really hard."

"Yeah, you were," he confirmed, kissing her forehead lovingly. "He decided to go and take a nap a little while ago. He and Henry had a great time. He told me they watched 'SpongeBob', played with their new dump trucks, and David even taught Henry how to draw." Aria giggled softly, thinking about her son. "In fact, he drew us a picture."

"Oh, really," she asked, intrigued, "Where is it?" He reached over her and grabbed a sheet of paper, handing it to his wife. It was a drawing of their family having a picnic outside. Aria smiled softly, "It's so beautiful. David is so intelligent and talented; I can't even grasp the concept that he is only a four year old. He seems very mature for his age."

Ezra sighed, "Yes that he is. Once he was inside, we came in here while he told me about his night. He was overly clingy. He told me how he misses spending one-on-one time with me." His face fell, remembering the sad look on his face as his son told him this.

"Hey, it is not your fault," she touched his face softly, causing him to look into her eyes, "You have no control over this stuff."

"Yeah, but I should," he replied quickly, angry at himself, "I was perfectly fine before, so why is it all of a sudden taking over?"

"Ezra," she whispered as his facial features unclenched, "You will get better. This sick part only lasts a while. The medicine you are taking will make you better. Hanna's grandmother had it, and after a few injections, she was absolutely fine and went on with her life perfectly. I promise; this will all work out." She gave him a reassuring smile.

"You're right," he told her, "Like always," he pulled her close, but she tensed, bringing a hand to her back. He loosened his grip and scrunched his face, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," she sighed, "I'm just hurting a little. My back is really sore."

"Maybe I can help with that," he whispered, unwrapping himself from her, "Flip over on your stomach and relax." He began to lift her shirt, exposing her small back. Once it was off, she did as she was told. A sigh escaped her lips, anticipating his touch. He grabbed her hips, squeezing them gently. He moved up her spine, gently kneading the knots in her muscles until there was no more pain. Her eyes shut as her body became at ease. A moan fled her throat as he made his way up to her shoulders. He chuckled softly, "Feels good, baby?"

She mumbled an answer as he continued to paw at her skin. He smiled, continuing to rub his thumbs in circles around her creamy features. His hands began to shift to her sides, where he traced his fingers delicately up and down her curves. They stayed there for a while, outlining her waist. The brunette ached for his touch on her skin. She loved the way he was so cautious and gentle about everything he did to her. He always made sure it wasn't too hard, just blissful. Her mind was finally cleared of everything else except for her husband. Ezra moved his massaging hands down to her lower back as he brought his lips to her neck. She gasped as he began to kiss along her hairline and continued down to the middle of her backbone. Another moan escaped her, causing Ezra to catch his breath. Her little sounds were just too much to handle.

"Aria, you are so gorgeous," he whispered in her ear as he nibbled softly on her earlobe.

"Well, thank you," she giggled as the vibrations of his voice tickled her neck. He flipped her over in one swift motion, pinning her down to the mattress. He smiled deviously at her as he grabbed her wrists and brought them above her head, entwining his with them. He brought his head down to her lips and kissed her fervently, their mouths molding together perfectly.

She sighed, breaking away from the passionate kiss, "Maybe we should stop before things get out of control. David can walk in at any moment," he kissed down her neck as she continued to talk. "Ezra," she giggled, "I'm serious."

"No," he said firmly, "You are too much of a tease to me. This happens way too often."

"I'm sorry, but I would rather wait until I we know we won't be bothered at all," she told him, pulling his head up to hers as she looked into his eyes. He sighed, clearly frustrated, and fell to the side of her.

"Tease," he mumbled, causing her to roll her eyes.

"Oh, shut up," she wrapped her arms around him and kissed his cheek, "Thank you for the massage." He placed his hand atop hers, rubbing them softly. The rain continued to pour, creating a soft melody of calmness. Ezra's eyes drooped as he listened to the sounds. Aria smiled, watching as his strokes on her hand slowed to a stop. She slowly took it from him, trying her hardest not to wake him, which she didn't. "I love you, Mr. Sleepyhead."

She climbed out of bed and walked out of the room, closing the door softly behind her. Aria quietly walked into David's room, seeing that her son was snoring lightly, his blankets all tangled up in his feet. She smiled warmly, padding over to his bed and pulling the blankets back over his body. Quietly, she crouched down next to him and brought her fingers up to his forehead. "My sweet angel," she whispered, trailing her finger down his nose, "Mommy loves you with all of her heart, and if you need anything, my love, please tell Momma. You are the best thing that has ever happened to us." Her head bent down to David's cheek as she kissed it. After brushing away one more curly lock that caressed his innocent face, she left the room and went into the kitchen, about to begin cooking for her family.

"I wonder what Ezra would like tonight," she whispered to herself, opening the door to the refrigerator. She looked over the shelves, not finding much interest in anything they had, not like they had much. They hadn't been to the grocery store in a week or two. "I guess I'll go make a quick trip," she decided, grabbing the keys off of the counter and putting on her shoes.

* * *

Aria pushed the grocery basket down the aisles of the store, in search for her main necessities. She sighed, wondering how much all of this would cost. With everything they needed to pay for at the moment, she was surprised that she hadn't spiraled into debt yet. She still needed to call the local coffee shop down the street to see if there were any jobs available for her to start as soon as she possibly could. She didn't know what times she would have to work, but as long as she could do it, she really didn't care. Any time would be good for her if it gave her a little more cash to pay for everything else.

"Another thing I need to add onto my list of never ending things to do," she mumbled, looking through the groceries and pulling out the things she needed for dinner tonight. She scratched the things she needed off of her list and made her way back to the front of the store, but she ended up in the baby aisle instead of the register. She looked at the extremely small, delicate clothes, smiling as she felt the velvety material. She walked a little ways, her eyes roaming all of the little shoes, bows, bottles, socks, and everything else that just screamed "baby". She shook her head, trying to get out of the daydream she was pulled into. Before she even realized it, tears had sprung to her eyes. She wanted another child so badly. She wanted to be a mother to a second child more than she wanted anything else in the world. However, she knew she couldn't have one. At least not anytime soon. David was starting school, Ezra was dealing with his Multiple Sclerosis, and they didn't have enough money to support another child. As much as it pained her heart, she had to put off getting pregnant for her family. She had no room to be selfish by any means.

"Stop this," she whispered to herself, shaking her head at how silly she was being and wiping her tears away. With one last glance around, she made her way to the front of the store, ready to go home. She quickly checked out, and after paying a large amount of money for almost nothing, she made her way back to her car. The rain was light, but it still soaked her clothes as she proceeded to place her groceries in the back of her car. After she was finished, she climbed into the vehicle and sighed deeply. The brunette began trying to shove her key into the ignition, but it wouldn't go in, adding to her frustration. She groaned loudly, throwing the keys aside and placing her head on the steering wheel while tears began streaming down her face. She placed her head in her hands and just sat there in the parking lot, letting out all of the tears she had been holding back for what felt like ages. Aria had always had faith in everything, and she prayed every night and every morning. Most people would've given up believing by now, but it seemed like the only thing keeping her going was faith. It was all she had that would catch her whenever she fell, and no matter what happened, she would never stop believing.

**Note: Oh, how I have missed writing. Writer's block sucks. Believe me when I say I have been trying to write, but I just sit with a blank page staring back at me and no inspiration. This is what I managed to think of, and even though it isn't much, I enjoyed writing it. I'm so sorry for the long wait, you guys, but I hope it was worth it. Thank you for reading, and please review (:**

**~Laura**


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